Franklin  Institute  Library 


FHILdbELFHId 

ClaM.fcfe3..-.S   Book  J^..&.2>.  3.1  Accession .5...^..^5..2o 


Article  V. — The  Library  shall  be  divided  into  two  classes  ;  the  first 
comprising  such  works  as,  from  their  rarity  or  value,  should  not  be  lent 
out,  all  unbound  periodicals,  and  such  text  books  as  ought  to  be  found 
in  a  library  of  reference  except  when  required  by  Committees  of  the 
Institute,  or  by  members  or  holders  of  second  class  stock,  who  have 
obtained  the  sanction  of  the  Committee.  The  second  class  shall  include 
those  books  intended  for  circulation. 

Article  VI. — The  Secretary  shall  have  authority  to  loan  to  Members 
and  to  holders  of  second  class  stock,  any  work  belonging  to  the  second 
class,  subject  to  the  following  regulations: 

Section  1.—  No  individual  shall  be  permitted  to  have  more  than  two 
books  out  at  one  time,  without  a  written  permission,  signed  by  at  least 
two  members  of  the  Library  Committe  ;  nor  shall  a  book  be  kept  out 
more  than  two  weeks  ;  but  if  no  one  has  applied  for  it,  the  former  bor- 
rower may  renew  the  loan.  Should  any  person  have  applied  for  it,  the 
latter  shall  have  the  preference. 

Section  2. — A  fine  of  ten  cents  per  week  shall  be  exacted  for  the 
detention  of  a  book  beyond  the  limited  time  ;  and  if  a  book  be  not  re- 
turned within  three  months  it  shall  be  deemed  lost,  and  the  borrower 
shall,  in  addition  to  his  fines,  forfeit  its  value. 

Section  3. — Should  any  book  be  returned  injured,  the  borrower  shall 
pay  for  the  injury,  or  replace  the  book,  as  the  Library  Committee  may 
direct ;  and  if  one  or  more  books,  belonging  to  a  set  or  sets,  be  lost,  the 
borrower  shall  replace  them  or  make  full  restitution. 

Article  VII. — Any  person  removing  from  the  Hall,  without  permis- 
sion from  the  proper  authorities,  any  book,  newspaper  or  other  property 
in  charge  of  the  Library  Committee,  shall  be  reported  to  the  Committee, 
who  may  inflict  any  fine  not  exceeding  twenty-five  dollars. 

Article  VIII. — No  member  or  holder  of  second  class  stock,  whose 
annual  contribution  for  the  current  year  shall  be  unpaid  or  who  is  in 
arrears  for  fines,  shall  be  entitled  to  the  privileges  of  the  Library  or 
Reading  Room. 

Article  IX. — If  any  member  or  holder  of  second  class  stock,  shall 
refuse  or  neglect  to  comply  with  the  foregoing  rules,  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  the  Secretary  to  report  him  to  the  Committee  on  the  Library. 

Article  X. — Any  Member  or  holder  of  second  class  stock,  detected 
in  mutilating  the  newspapers,  pamphlets  or  books  belonging  to  the  Insti- 
tute shall  be  deprived  of  his  right  of  membership,  and  the  name  of  the 
offender  shall  be  made  public. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2015 


https://archive.org/details/practicaltreatisOOparn 


A  PRACTICAL  TREATISE 

DYEING  AID  CALICO-PRINTING; 

INCLUDING  THE 

LATEST  INVENTIONS  AND  IMPROVEMENTS; 


A  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ORIGIN,  MANUFACTURE,  USES,  AND  CHEMICAL  PROPER- 
TIES OF  THE  VARIOUS  ANIMAL,  VEGETABLE,  AND  MINERAL 
SUBSTANCES    EMPLOYED    IN    THESE  ARTS. 

WITH  AN  APPENDIX, 

COMPRISING  DEFINITIONS  OF  CHEMICAL  TERMS  ;  WITH    TABLES   OF  WEIGHTS, 
MEASURES,  THERMOMETERS,  HYDROMETERS,  AC. 

BY  AN"   EXPERIENCED  DYER. 

ASSISTED  BY 

SEVERAL  SCIENTIFIC  GENTLEMEN 

WITH  A  SUPPLEMENT, 

CONTAINING  THE  MOST  RECENT  DISCOVERIES  IN  COLOR  CHEMISTRY. 

BY  ROBERT  MACFARLANE, 

Of  the  Scientific  American. 


WITH  ENGRAVINGS  ON  STEEL  AND  WOOD. 


NEW  YORK: 
JOHN  WILEY,  56  WALKER  STREET. 
1860. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1860,  by 
JOHN  WILEY, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  Southern 
District  of  New  York. 


E.  CRAIGnEAD, 
Printer,  Stereotyper,  and  Electrotyper, 

daiton  33uiltiing, 

81,  83,  and  85  Centre  Street. 


PREFACE  TO  NEW  EDITION. 


The  present  edition  is  accompanied  with  a  supplement 
which  brings  the  art  up  to  the  present  date.  It  contains  a 
description  of  those  peculiar  coloring  products,  aniline  and 
rnurexide,  which  have  excited  so  much  attention  in  Europe 
during  the  past  few  years.  It  also  contains  fresh  and  re- 
cent information  regarding  madder  colors ;  a  mode  of  ren- 
dering textile  fabrics  fire-proof;  processes  for  detecting  the 
different  kinds  of  dyes  on  goods,  and  other  useful  matter 
relating  to  the  art.  The  information  presented  has  been 
principally  obtained  from  recent  patents  granted  in  Eng- 
land and  France,  and  from  the  transactions  of  scientific 
associations.  It  is  arranged  for  practical  use,  for  the  first 
time,  in  a  work  devoted  to  dyeing  and  printing.  Much  of 
it  is  in  a  practical  form,  while  some  of  it  is  rather  more  of 
a  suggestive  than  of  a  perfectly  finished  character.  It  is 
believed,  however,  that  this  will  prove  rather  beneficial 
than  otherwise,  because  "color  chemistry"  is  strictly  an 
experimental  art,  and  the  information  given  must  stimulate 
to  many  new  experiments. 

The  information  relating  to  aniline — that  peculiar 
product  of  coal  tar — is  interesting.  Some  chemists  have 
expressed  unfavorable  opinions  as  to  its  ever  becoming  a 
practical  dyeing  agent,  but  kindred  sentiments  once  pre- 
vailed regarding  the  bi-chromate  of  potash,  which  is  now 


iv 


PREFACE  TO  NEW  EDITION. 


so  generally  employed  in  coloring.  The  present  high  price 
of  aniline,  and  the  difficulty  which  some  have  experienced 
in  fixing  it,  have  contributed  to  retard  its  use,  but  it  should 
not  be  forgotten  that  its  sources  are  inexhaustible,  and  that 
it  only  requires  improved  modes  of  manufacturing,  to  ren- 
der it  cheap  and  eminently  adapted  to  the  applications  of 
color-chemistry. 

It  is  to  the  mineral  kingdom  that  the  attention  of  chemists 
should  be  chiefly  directed  for  obtaining  new  coloring  pro- 
ducts. The  vegetable  and  animal  kingdoms  do  not  keep  pace 
in  furnishing  a  supply  equal  to  the  demand.  The  most  bril- 
liant colors  are  exhibited  in  the  carnelian,  the  ruby,  the 
emerald,  and  other  gems ;  these  may  yet  be  imitated  by  art, 
and,  like  the  famous  lapis  lazuli,  rendered  subservient  to  the 
purposes  of  coloring. 

An  infinite  amount  of  pleasure  is  derived  from  the  colors 
of  nature ;  and  there  is  no  art  which  has  more  claims  upon 
mankind  than  that  of  dyeing.  There  is,  probably,  not  a 
human  being  in  the  whole  world  that  has  not  some  dyed 
article  of  apparel,  or  ornament,  yet  although  the  art  has  been 
practised  among  all  nations  from  time  immemorial,  it  is  but 
recently  that  it  has  arisen  to  anything  like  a  science,  and 
there  is  much  to  be  done  yet  to  advance  it  to  that  position 
which  it  deserves  to  occupy.  It  is  pleasing  to  know,  that  at 
the  present  moment,  there  are  quite  a  number  of  distinguished 
chemists  who  are  also  practical  dyers  and  calico-printers. 
Chevreul,  of  France,  and  Dr.  Calvert  and  James  Napier,  in 
Great  Britain,  have  written  works  on  dyeing,  which  are  an 
honor  to  any  science.  The  art  of  dyeing  has  now  advanced 
from  a  congeries  of  crude  receipts  to  a  scientific  position, 
and  the  matter  contained  in  this  supplement  is  a  valuable 
contribution  to  the  general  stock. 


PREFACE. 


Experience  is  the  great  fountain  of  knowledge.  Although 
mankind  are  indebted  to  the  deductions  of  abstract  Science 
and  the  intuitions  of  Genius  for  many  valuable  discoveries  in 
the  domain  of  the  Useful  Arts,  yet  it  is  not  the  less  true  that 
the  march  of  invention  and  improvement  in  the  practical  pur- 
suits of  life  has  usually  been  a  steady,  gradual,  step  by  step 
progress.  Ages  before  Lord  Bacon  enunciated  the  axiom 
that  education  is  the  only  true  and  sure  key  to  the  treasure 
house  of  Nature's  secrets,  the  leaders  and  pioneers  in  the 
great  work  of  industrial  advancement  had  made  that  truth 
t  he  basis  of  their  efforts,  and  acted  in  undoubting  conviction 
of  its  soundness.  In  order  to  govern  and  guide  the  impetu- 
ous and  apparently  wayward  combinations  of  matter,  they 
were  content  to  learn  as  children,  and  follow  trustingly  as 
devotees.  Only  thus  will  Nature  consent  to  place  her  gigantic 
and  wondrous  laboratories  at  the  disposal  and  service  of  our 
race.  Wisely,  shrewdly,  therefore,  have  practical  men  re- 
garded with  habitual  distrust  the  promises  of  sciolists  and 
empirics,  to  open  to  them  royal  roads  to  the  results  they 
would  compass,  by  following,  usually  at  heavy  cost,  certain 
abstractions  which  they  term  infallible  deductions  from  the 
laws  of  Chemical  Affinity.  For,  though  the  laws  of  matter 
are  indeed  immutable,  and  their  operation  perfect,  our  knowl- 
edge even  of  the  least  recondite  and  most  important  among 
them  is  very  often  far  otherwise. 

We  know  tha^  certain  phenomena  apparently  stand  to  each 
other  in  ithe  relation  of  Cause  and  Effect ;  but  if  we  would 
act,  in  any  matter  of  importance,  on  the  assumption  that  cer- 


i 


Vi  PREFACE. 

tain  other  phenomena  must  stand  in  like  relation,  we  should 
begin  by  subjecting  our  theory  to  the  ordeal  of  Experiment. 
Doubt,  of  whatever  kind,  is  to  be  dispelled  by  Action  alone. 

But  the  error  of  trusting  too  far  to  theory,  with  the  misfor- 
tunes which  it  has  engendered,  has  often  impelled  practical 
men  of  limited  acquirements  to  the  opposite  mistake  of  con- 
demning all  book-making,  (so  they  term  it,)  as  illusory  or  at 
least  superfluous.  They  say  truly  that  Experience  is  the  only 
safe  guide  in  the  Useful  Arts ;  but  the  conclusion  they  virtu- 
ally arrive  at  implies  that  their  experience  of  itself  is  all  suf- 
ficient. They  might  as  well  assume  to  evolve  the  whole  sci- 
ence of  Geology  from  the  analysis  of  a  single  field  or  stone- 
heap.  The  fact  that  their  own  observation  and  that  of  their 
predecessors  has  proved  rich  in  suggestions  of  improvement 
should  have  taught  them  rather  to  appreciate  than  to  disre- 
gard the  combined  and  infinitely  varied  experience  of  all  who 
have  at  any  time  been  engaged  in  the  same  or  subsidiary  avo- 
cations. Here,  then,  is  the  proper  sphere  of  a  practical  trea- 
tise on  any  branch  or  branches  of  the  Useful  Arts.  By  it  the 
knowledge  which  has  been  obtained  through  a  long  series  of 
experiments  at  a  cost  of  thousands,  and  often  at  the  hazard 
of  personal  injury,  is  made  available  to  all  who  may  seek  it  at 
a  trifling  expense,  and  without  inconvenience  or  danger. 

Perhaps  there  is  no  department  of  industry  to  which  these 
remarks  apply  with  greater  force  than  to  the  art  of  Dyeing, 
connected  as  it  is  on  one  side  with  the  most  subtle  and  pro- 
found speculations  in  Natural  Philosophy,  on  the  other  with 
the  every-day  practice  of  many  useful  arts.  It  is  not  and 
must  not  be  regarded  as  an  isolated  pursuit,  which  can  be 
carried  to  perfection  by  itself.  Its  improvement  must  closely 
follow  the  march  of  the  Physical  Sciences,  and  will  ever 
be  intimately  interwoven  with  the  advancement  of  several 
other  arts. 

Dyeing,  therefore,  is  manifestly  a  progressive  art — a  trade 
that  must  be  learned,  and  one  which  equally  with  any  other, 
is  dependent  for  its  successful  prosecution  on  a  clear  under- 
standing of  principles.  Those  engaged  in  it  have  equal  need 
and  equal  claim  with  any  other  class  of  artists  to  be  supplied 


PREFACE. 


vii 


with  all  the  information  which  may  be  rendered  conducive  to 
their  interest,  and  to  their  perfection  in  their  calling.  The 
delicate  and  critical  character  of  many  operations  in  their  art 
renders  precise  and  certain  information  in  regard  to  the  neces- 
sary processes  of  more  importance  in  theirs  than  in  almost 
any  other  avocation. 

The  trade  of  the  dyer  is  open  and  accessible  to  all,  and 
some  of  its  simpler  details  are  acquired  with  decided  facility  ; 
consequently,  the  instances  are  rare  in  which  young  men 
attain  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  art  through  a  regular 
apprenticeship  or  systematic  course  of  instruction.  Dyers 
have  usually  become  such  at  a  mature  age,  and  the  summit 
of  their  ambition  has  been  to  acquire  a  ready  familiarity  with, 
and  expertness  in,  the  mechanical  routine  of  the  dye-house 
and  print- work ;  and  when  these  are  secured,  with  the  highest 
attainable  rate  of  wages,  their  zeal  for  improvement  subsides. 
A  few,  indeed,  not  content  with  the  honors,  or  perhaps  with 
the  wages,  of  journeymen,  aspire  to  a  foremanship ;  but  the 
path  whereby  they  hope  to  climb  to  such  preferment  is  simply 
that  of  long  and  steady  service,  and  a  good  memory  for  man- 
ipulation. These  are  valuable  qualifications,  but  they  would 
be  in  no  degree  depreciated  by  adding  to  them  a  more  ex- 
tended and  thorough  knowledge  of  the  fundamental  princi- 
ples of  the  art  than  usually  falls  to  the  share  of  the  practical 
dyer.  And  not  only  is  the  amount  of  such  knowledge  usu- 
ally possessed  insufficient,  but  there  is  manifested  in  the  dye- 
house  a  palpable  and  lamentable  lack  of  interest  in  every 
thing  regarding  the  ordinary  round  of  mere  mechanical 
operations. 

Dyers  who  achieve  the  distinction  of  good  workmen  are 
accustomed  to  estimate  their  abilities  by  the  contrast  which 
exists  between  themselves  and  the  newly  initiated  journey- 
man ;  they  rarely  or  never  contemplate  the  wide  field  which 
lies  unimproved  if  not  unexplored  before  them.  Indeed  some 
of  them  are  so  injudicious  as  to  boast  of  their  capabilities, 
their  expertness  and  their  knowledge  ;  and  it  is  not  uncom- 
mon for  such  to  indulge  in  petty  jealousies,  and  to  endeavor 
to  conceal  the  secret  of  their  mode  of  producing  a  certain 


viii 


PREFACE. 


result.  Follies  of  this  sort  have  not  been  confined  to  journey- 
men ;  an  employer  has  been  known  to  complain  that  his  work- 
men are  inefficient,  when  at  the  same  time  he  was  stealing, 
as  it  were,  from  one  part  of  the  dye-house  to  another  with  the 
very  materials  which  it  is  their  business  to  understand  and 
use,  in  covered  vessels,  lest  some  one  should  learn  what  is  the 
nature  of  the  process  whereby  he  produces,  through  their 
labor,  a  desired  result.  He  thus  exacts  of  them  the  advan- 
tages of  knowledge,  while  doing  his  best  to  retain  them  in 
iguorance.  While  such  narrow  views  are  prevalent  we  may 
regret,  but  cannot  wonder,  that  years  have  been  spent — we 
should  rather  say  wasted — in  persevering  and  costly  efforts  to 
discover  what  was  long  before  well  known  to  all  who  thor- 
oughly understood  the  scientific  principles  of  the  art.  This 
same  ignorance  of  principles  often  renders  both  masters  and 
workmen  the  dupes  of  a  class  of  impudent  knaves  who  hawk 
about  valuable  secrets  at  so  much  apiece. 

Although  chemistry  is  making  rapid  and  constant  advances, 
many  of  the  useful  arts  dependent  on  that  science  are  station- 
ary; the  artisans  or  manufacturers  interested  therein  being 
too  imperfectly  acquainted  with  Chemical  Science  to  profit  by 
the  hints  so  frequently  afforded  them,  or  even  to  know  in  what 
direction  to  look  for  improvements.  By  this  negligence  or 
inability  of  the  practical  man,  Scientific  Chemistry  is  in  turn 
greatly  retarded.  And  yet,  in  defiance  of  all  untoward  influ- 
ences, the  recent  progress  of  our  art  has  been  truly  astonish- 
ing. A  single  practical  hint  has  often  sufficed  to  work  a  com- 
plete revolution  in  some  branch  of  the  trade  ;  and  were  the 
principles  of  Chemistry  once  generally  understood  by  those 
practically  engaged  in  their  application  to  Dyeing,  we  can 
hardly  fix  a  limit  to  the  changes  and  improvements  which 
would  ensue.  Lord  Bacon's  axiom,  that  1  knowledge  is 
power  !'  though  trite,  is  still  profoundly  true,  and  nowhere 
else  is  its  truth  more  emphatically  demonstrated  than  in  the 
domain  of  the  practical  dyer. 

The  only  treatise  on  Dyeing  extant  that  deserves  considera- 
tion is,  we  need  hardly  say,  that  of  Berthollet.  Dr.  Bancroft's 
work  ranks  next,  but  it  is  of  little  or  no  use  in  the  dye-house, 


PREFACE.  ix 

being  too  exclusively  theoretical,  at  the  same  time  that  it  is 
unmethodical,  and  full  of  inexcusable  repetitions.  It  is  a  com- 
plete wilderness  of  words,  often  without  definite  meaning  or 
the  least  applicability  to  the  subject  in  hand.  It  is,  in  short 
— as  practical  men  well  know — better  calculated  to  mislead 
than  to  instruct. 

Berthollet's  work,  though  superior  to  that  of  Bancroft,  is 
yet  of  little  value  at  the  present  day  as  a  manual  for  the  dye- 
house.  Its  directions  are  entirely  too  general,  its  conclusions 
are  often  exceedingly  erroneous,  and  it  is  lumbered  with  use- 
less repetitions  and  exploded  theories. 

Neither  of  these  publications,  however,  contains  a  solitary 
improvement,  made  since  1814,  in  any  of  the  processes  of 
which  they  treat,  so  that  nine-tenths  or  more  of  their  contents 
have  been  utterly  superseded  by  discoveries  and  improvements 
made  since  they  were  written.  No  other  book  on  dyeing  has 
appeared  that  even  aspires  to  be  original  and  practical.*  In 
the  following  treatise  the  author  has  endeavored — 

1.  To  reduce  the  whole  theory  of  dyeing  to  the  utmost 
simplicity  and  accuracy ; 

2.  To  classify,  arrange,  and  define  colors,  in  order  to  ena- 
ble those  who  are  pursuing  the  related  branches  of  study,  as 
well  as  the  artist,  to  comprehend  more  easily  the  nature  of 
each  particular  hue,  tint,  and  shade,  and  the  relation  it  bears 
to  the  primary  elements  of  light,  darkness,  and  color  ; 

3.  To  elucidate  each  particular  subject  in  such  a  manner 
as,  it  is  hoped,  will  impart  substantial  knowledge  to  those 
seeking  it,  and  at  the  same  time  exhibit  those  shoals  toward 
which  so  many  have  been  attracted  by  erroneous  deductions 
and  false  conclusions ; 

4.  To  set  forth  the  actual  properties,  characters,  and  uses 
of  the  various  Animal,  Vegetable,  and  Mineral  substances 
employed  in  dyeing  and  the  auxiliary  arts  ;  and 

5.  To  define  the  various  chemical  and  technical  terms  em- 
ployed in  the  dye-house,  print-work,  &c. 


*  Mr.  Cooper's  treatise  is  almost  a  verbatim  copy  of  Berthollet's.  It  was  pub- 
lished by  Dobson,  Philadelphia,  1814. 

B 


X  PREFACE. 

In  the  work  which  the  author  now  presents  to  the  public, 
he  has  embodied  not  only  the  results  of  his  own  experience, 
for  more  than  twenty  years,  in  the  most  celebrated  dye-houses 
of  Great  Britain  and  France,  but  also  a  digest  of  all  worth 
preserving  that  has  hitherto  been  written  on  the  subject,  in- 
cluding everything  of  practical  value  to  be  found  in  Persozs' 
"Traite  Theorique  et  Pratique  de  1'Impression  des  Tissus," 
"  Annales  de  Chimie  et  de  Physique,"  Ure's  "  Dictionary  of 
Arts,  Manufactures  and  Mines,"  his  "  Dictionary  of  Chemis- 
try," and  in  ParnelPs  "  Applied  Chemistry."  Giving  others 
full  credit  for  what  they  have  done,  the  author  has  reserved 
and  exercised  the  right  of  making  such  corrections  and  addi- 
tions as  his  own  practical  experience  has  suggested,  and  the 
interests  of  the  trade  imperatively  demanded. 

In  pursuing  his  investigations,  the  author  enjoyed  some  ad- 
vantages which  few,  if  any,  beside  him,  have  ever  possessed. 
Being  intimately  acquainted  with  nearly  every  leading  manu- 
facturer in  England,  France,  Belgium,  and  Prussia,  he  has  had 
free  and  full  access  to  establishments  which  have  been  open  to 
but  few.  He  takes  this  opportunity  to  return  heartfelt  thanks 
for  the  kindness  every  where  shown  him,  and  trusts  that  it  has 
been  at  least  partially  requited  by  the  compilation  of  this  work. 

A  brief  description  of  every  valuable  invention  and  im- 
provement connected  with  Dyeing  or  Calico-Printing  made  in 
Europe  since  1834,  is  given  in  the  following  pages.  Many  of 
these  inventions  have  proved  of  immense  value  to  the  trade, 
and  the  list,  we  are  sure,  forms  one  of  the  most  important 
features  of  the  work.  To  those  of  our  brethren  who  care  to 
institute  comparisons  between  this  and  the  works  on  kindred 
themes  already  in  their  hands,  we  would  instance,  as  subjects 
for  critical  examination,  the  articles  on  Indigo,  Logwood, 
Madder,  Bleaching,  Mordants,  Tannin,  and  Gallic  Acid, 
Yellow,  Blue,  &c,  commencing  on  pages  72,  98,  105,  194, 
247,  283,  324,  and  331  respectively. 

Practical  men  will  hardly  fail  to  observe  that  the  general 
arrangement  and  classification  of  the  subjects  here  treated, 
are  based  on  principles  entirely  different  from  those  which 
have  governed  the  compilation  of  any  former  work  on  Dyeing 


PREFACE. 


xi 


or  Dyeing  and  Calico-Printing.  They  will  also  judge 
whether  any  other  arrangement  than  that  we  have  adopted 
would  not  have  marred  the  utility  and  completeness  of  the 
work.* 

In  describing  the  various  processes  of  dyeing,  the  author 
has  endeavored,  on  every  fitting  occasion,  to  impress  upon  the 
operators  the  necessity  of  studying  and  understanding  princi- 
ples, in  connection  with  his  practice,  and  he  has  spared  no 
effort  to  render  his  directions  as  lucid  and  simple  as  possible. 
If  his  observations  shall  have  the  effect  of  inducing  even  one 
of  his  brethren  to  attend  more  carefully  to  the  principles  of 
his  trade,  it  cannot  be  said  that  his  labor  has  been  altogether 
in  vain. 

He  cannot  close  these  introductory  remarks  without  tender- 
ing his  grateful  acknowledgments  for  the  valuable  aid  he 
has  received  in  the  preparation  of  this  work  from  Walter 
Crum,  Esq.,  of  Thornliebank,  Glasgow,  D.  R.  Hay,  Esq.,  of 
Edinburgh,  John  Mercer,  Esq.,  of  Oakenshaw,  James  Thom- 
son, Esq.,  of  Primrose,  near  Clitheroe,  and  M.  Daniel  Koech- 
lin  Schouch,  of  Mulhausen.  Far  distant  be  the  day  when 
genius,  integrity,  and  enlightened  philanthropy  like  theirs 
shall  be  divorced  from  that  influence  and  honor  which  in  such 
hands  are  wielded  but  to  relieve  the  wants  and  increase  the 
happiness  of  their  fellow  men. 


*  A  more  detailed  and  accurate  view  of  the  plan  of  this  work  may  be  obtained 
by  a  glance  over  the  table  of  contents,  and  also  at  the  index. 


CONTENTS 


PART  FIRST. 


CHAPTER  I. 

HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 

Page. 

Colors  of  the  vegetable  Kingdom — Origin  of  Dyeing — Celebrity  of  the  Pur- 
ple, Scarlet,  and  Blue  Dyes  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  Tyrians,  and  Israel- 
ites— Homer  and  Ovid's  mention  of  Purple  Garments — Varieties  of  Purple, 
and  Processes  of  Dyeing  them,  described  by  Goguet  and  Heeren — Pliny's 
account  of  Purple  Robes — Swinburne's  description  of  the  Purple  Dye — 
Scarlet  (of  the  Scriptures),  probable  method  of  Dyeing  it  in  the  time  of 
Moses — Antiquity  of  Adrianople  Red — Topical  Dyeing  of  the  Ancient 
Egyptians  and  Phoenicians,  and  Indians — Block-printing  in  China — Origin 
of  Calico-printing — Dyeing  by  the  Mexicans.    -  1 


CHAPTER  II. 

FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 

Object  of  Dyeing  Operations — Theories  of  Light  and  Color — analogy  between 
Color  and  Sound — Chemical  Knowledge  indispensable  to  the  Dyer — Ele- 
ments of  Vegetable  Substances — Action  of  Acids  upon  them — Influence  of 
Light  upon   egetables — Coloring  Matter  of  Flowers — Application  to  Dyeing.    1 5 


CHAPTER  III. 

ANIMAL    AND   VEGETABLE    COLORING    SUBSTANCES,  WITH  THEIR 
ORIGIN,  USES,  AND  PRINCIPAL  CHEMICAL  CHARACTERS,  ETC. 

Practical  observations  on  Lichens — Anotta — Archil — Barwood — Bark  (Quer- 
citron)— Berries  of  Avignon — Brazil-wood — Camwood — Carmine  and  the 
various  processes  of  Manufacturing   it — Carthamus  (Safflower) — Cate- 
chue — Cochineal,  and  its  Coloring  principle — Cudbear — Fustic — Garancine 
-Hematine — Indigo,  and  its  Manufacture — Mistaken  notions  of  Dr.  Ure 


xiv 


CONTENTS. 


on  this  subject — Kermes — Lac,  Lac  Dye — Lakes — Red  Lakes — Carminated 
Lakes — Madder  Lakes — Brazil-wood  Lakes — Yellow  Lakes — Litmus — 
Logwood — Madder — Madder  Purple — Madder  red — Madder  Orange — Mad- 
der Yellow — Madder  Brown — Brands  of  Casks,  and  Adulteration  of  Mad- 
der by  Mineral  and  Vegetable  substances — On  the  determination  of  the  Color- 
ing power  by  the  Colorimeter,  Dyeing,  &c. — Nicaragua-wood — Peachwood 
— Quercitron — Redwood — Safflower — Sandal,  or  Red  Saunders-wood — 
Sapan-wood — Sumach — Turmeric — Turnsole — Weld — Woad — Extracting 
Coloring  Matter  from  Dyewoods.      -      --      --      --  -37 

CHAPTER  IV. 

MINERAL    COLORING    SUBSTANCES    EMPLOYED    IN    DYEING,  WITH 
THEIR  PRINCIPAL  CHEMICAL  CHARACTERS,  ETC. 

Antimony-Orange — Arseniate  of  Chromium — Cadmium — Chrome- Yellow,  or 
Chromate  of  lead — Chrome-Orange,  or  subchromate  of  lead — Manganese- 
Brown — Orpiment — Peroxide  of  iron — Prussiate  of  Copper — Prussian  Blue 
— Scheele's  Green — Sulphuret  of  Cadmium.     ------  136 


CHAPTER  V. 

ACIDS  EMPLOYED  IN  DYEING  AND  CALICO-PRINTING. 

Acetic  Acid — Chloric  Acid — Chromic  Acid — Citric  Acid — Malic  Acid — Muri- 
atic, or  Hydrochloric  Acid — Nitric  Acid — Nitro-Muriatic  Acid  (Aqua  regia) 
— Oxalic  Acid — Pyroligneous  Acid  (or  Wood  Vinegar)— Sulphuric  Acid — 
Tannic  Acid — Tartaric  Acid.    -      -      -  -      -      -      -  -155 


PART  SECOND. 
OF  BLEACHING. 

CHAPTER  I. 

COTTON. 

Necessity  of  Goods  being  a  pure  white — Processes  of  Bleaching — Old,  Im- 
proved, and  New  Processes — Theory  of  Bleaching — Favourable  influence 
of  light — Objections  to  Chlorine  as  a  Bleaching  Agent — Application  of  Chlo- 
ride of  Lime: — Method  of  making  Bleaching  Powder — Destruction  of  its 
Bleaching  properties,  and  the  cause — Various  methods  of  testing  the  quali- 
ties of  Bleaching  Powder — Objections  to  most  of  them — Remarks  on 
Bleached  Goods  intended  to  be  dyed  delicate  shades — Chemical  nature  of 
Bleaching — Erroneous  opinions  of  authors  upon  this  subject.    -      -      -  194 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


CHAPTER  II. 


LINEN. 

Page. 

Preparation  of  Flax  and  Hemp — Processes  of  Bleaching  them — Simpson's 
Patent  Process.       -      --      --      --      --      --  219 


CHAPTER  III. 


SILK. 

Cleansing  the  Silk  from  Gum — Action  of  Alkalis  on  Silk — Of  Soap — Old 
methods  of  Scouring — China-white — Azure-white,  and  Thread-white — 
Sulphuring — Azuring — Gum  of  Silk — Erroneous  opinions  of  Authors  re- 
specting it — Observations  on  Dyeing  Silk — Best  method  of  Scouring — In- 
fluence of  light — Bleaching  by  Steam.     -------  224 


CHAPTER  IV 


WOOL. 

Yolk  of  Wool — Its  nature — Methods  of  discharging  the  Yolk — Care  to  be 
observed  in  Scouring  Wool — Hirst  and  Newton's  Patent  Processes — Sul- 
phuring— Mode  of  operating — Fraudulent  Practices — Removing  harshness 
from  the  Wool  after  Sulphuring — Bleaching  Mousselaine-de-laines — He- 
bert's  Improved  Machine  for  Fulling  Cloth.     ------  230 


CHAPTER  V. 

Chlorimetry — Testing  weak  solutions  of  Bleaching-Powder — Testing  by  Ar- 
senious  Acid,  or  Green  Copperas — Great  danger  of  destroying  the  Goods — 
Care  to  be  taken — Improved  method  of  Testing.      -----  244 


PART  THIRD. 
DYEING  PROCESSES. 
CHAPTER  I. 

OF  MORDANTS. 

Mordants— Nature  and  application  of— Scarcity  of  Mordants— Chemical  union 
or  combination  of  Mordants  with  stuffs— Near  alliance  of  Dyeing  to  the 
science  of  Chemistry— Alum— Aluminous  Mordants— Alumina,  methods  of 
preparing— Various  qualities  of  Alum— Contamination  of— Injurious  effects 
on  light  shades— Advantage  of  substituting  Acetic  for  Sulphuric  Acid  as  its 


xvi 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 

solvent — Remarks  on  Dyeing — Observations  on  drying  goods  containing 
Volatile  Acids — Precautions  to  be  observed — Dyeing  Madder  Red  for  Cal- 
ico-Printing, by  means  of  Acetate  of  Alumina— Remarks  on  this  process — 
Dunging  and  Washing  supposed  to  extract  the  Mordant  and  leave  the  Base 
—Erroneous  opinions  of  writers  upon  this  subject — Preparation  of  the  Ace- 
tate of  Alumina — Mistaken  Notions  of  Dyers — Tin  Mordants — Messrs. 
Greenwood,  Mercer,  and  Barnes',  "Tin-preparing  Liquor" — Plumb-tub — 
Yellow  Spirits — Barwood — Red  Spirits — Mercer's  Assistant  Mordant  Liquor 
— Union  of  Cotton  with  Coloring  Matter.  248 

CHAPTER  II. 

Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid — Purity  of  Water — Chemical  knowledge  indispensa- 
ble to  the  Dyer — Construction  of  Dye-house.  284 

CHAPTER  III. 

OF  RED. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  RED  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Madder  Red — Adrianople,  or  Turkey-Red — 
French,  German,  and  Scotch  Processes,  with  the  Recent  Improvements — 
Imitation  Turkey-Red — Barwood,  Improved  method  of  Dyeing  with — Bra- 
zil-wood, Superior  Processes  of  Dyeing  with — Safflower  Pink.        -      -  300 

CHAPTER  IV. 

OF  YELLOW. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  YELLOW  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Splendid  new  Processes  of  Dyeing  Yellow  on  Cot- 
ton— Lemon- Yellow — Ambers — Precautions  to  be  observed — Absurd  no- 
tions of  Dyers  generally — Their  deficiency  in  Chemical  knowledge — The- 
ory and  Practice  of  Dyeing — Various  experiments — Yellow  with  Weld  and 
Quercitron — Opinions  of  Authors  upon  Dyeing  with  these  substances.      -  324 

CHAPTER  V. 

OF  BLUE. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLUE  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Preparation  of  Chcmic,  or  Solution  of  Indigo — 
Mistaken  notions  of  Dyers  and  Authors  upon  this  subject — Chemistry  of 
the  Blue- Vat — Setting  the  Vat — Sulphate  of  Iron,  Impurities  of— Errone- 
ous opinions  of  Dyers  upon  this  subject — Effect  of  impure  Copperas,  or  Sul- 
phate of  Iron,  in  the  Vat — Prussiate  of  Potash — Process  of  Dyeing  Prussian 
Blue — Dyeing  of  Lilacs,  Puces,  Lavenders,  &c.       -      -      -      -  -331 


CONTENTS. 


XVII 


CHAPTER  VI. 

OF  ORANGE. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  ORANGE  ON  COTTON. 

Page. 

Preliminary  observations — Splendid  Processes  of  Dyeing  Orange  on  Cotton — 
Precautions  to  be  observed — Anotta,  Improved  method  of  Dyeing  with — 
Remarks  on  this  Coloring  Substance — Salmon  and  Nankeen  Colors.        -  354 


CHAPTER  VII. 

OF  GREEN. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  GREEN  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Processes  of  Dyeing  Green  on  Cotton — Precautions 
to  be  observed — Preparation  of  Chemic  for  Cotton  Dyeing — Remarks  on 
this  Process — Mistaken  notions  of  Dyers  generally  on  Dyeing  Greens,  and 
the  Preparation  of  Chemic  for  Cotton  Dyeing — Green  on  Cotton  with  Fus- 
tic as  the  Yellowing  Substance — Drabs,  Fawns,  Olives,  and  Iron  Browns.  359 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

OF  PURPLE. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PURPLE  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Processes  of  Dyeing  Purple — Mercer's  Patent  Pur- 
ple Liquor — King  of  Purples,  De  Normandy's  Patent — Violets — Buffs,  &c.  364 


CHAPTER  IX. 

OF  BLACK. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Beautiful  Permanent  Jet  Black  on  Cotton — The 
Old  Methods  superseded — Catechue  Brown — Browns  with  Quercitron — 
Varieties  of  this  Color,  and  the  Modes  of  producing  them — Amaranth,  Cin- 
namon, &c. — General  Remarks  on  these  Dyes.        -  367 


PART  FOURTH. 
DYEING   PROCESSES  CONTINUED. 
CHAPTER  I. 

OF  RED. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  SCARLET  ON  WOOL. 

Observations  on  Colors,  Simple  and  Compound — Proper  names — Mordants  of 
the  different  Authors  for  Dyeing  Scarlet — Dyeing  Processes,  English. 


xviii 


CONTENTS. 


r  Page. 

French,  German,  and  Italian — General  Remarks  on  these  Processes — Lac- 
Scarlet — Crimson — Rose  Colors — Brazil-wood  Scarlet — Madder  Red,  &c.  375 

CHAPTER  II. 

OF  YELLOW. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  YELLOW  ON  WOOL. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Yellow  with  Weld,  Fustic,  and  Quercitron — Buff  Yellow 
— Hend  rick's  Patent  Process.  ---------  384 

CHAPTER  in. 

OF  BLUE,  ORANGE,  AND  GREEN. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLUE  ON  WOOL. 

Woad  or  Pastel  Vats,  their  Construction,  &c. — Setting  and  Managing  the 
Vats — Precautions  to  be  observed — Putrefaction  and  the  Remedy — Kober's 
Improved  Woad  Vat — Hendricks's  Process  for  superseding  the  use  of  In- 
digo in  Dyeing  Blue  on  Wool — Orange-Green — Another  Process  for  Dye- 
ing Green.  388 

CHAPTER  IV. 

OF  PURPLE,  BROWN,  GRAY,  AND  BLACK. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PURPLE  ON  WOOL. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Purples,  Violets,  Lilacs,  Colombines,  &c. — Brown,  Gray, 
Black — Kober's  Mordant  for  Wool— General  Remarks  on  these  subjects.  -  399 


PART  FIFTH. 

DYEING   PROCESSES  CONTINUED. 
CHAPTER  I. 

OF  BLACK,  GRAY,  AND  BROWN. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK  ON  SILK. 

Difference  between  Wool  and  Silk  Dyeing — What  constitutes  this  difference 
— Cleansing  the  Silk  from  Gum — Galling — General  Remarks  on  these  ope- 
rations— Processes  of  Dyeing  Black  on  Silk,  English,  French,  German, 
and  American — Feather  Dyeing — Variety  of  Colors — Grays— Nut,  Thorn, 
Black.  Iron  Grays,  &c. — Brown — Various  shades  of  Brown.     -      -      -  408 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  II. 

VIOLET,  PURPLE,  GREEN,  AND  ORANGE. 

Page 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Violets,  Lilacs,  Pigeon-necks,  Mallows,  &c. — Purple, 
Gillyflower,  Grisdeline,  and  Peach-blossom — Green — Emerald,  Landscape, 
Willow,  Bottle-greens,  &c. — Olive — Russet-olive — Aurora,  Orange,  &c.     -  417 


CHAPTER  III. 

OF  BLUE,   YELLOW,  SCARLET,  CRIMSON,  ETC. 
PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLUE  ON  SILK. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Blue  with  Berries — With  the  Indigo  Vat — With  Chemic, 
or  Solution  of  Indigo — Yellow  with  Chrome — With  the  Sulphuret  of  Cad- 
mium— With  Weld —  Scarlet —  Flesh-color — Crimson — Violets —  Puces — 
Crimsons  with  Brazil  wood — Pinks,  Roses,  &c. — Safliower,  Beautiful  Pro- 
cess of  Dyeing  with,  which  supersedes  every  other  method — Cherry  Reds — 
Rose-Colors,  &c.     -      --      --      --      --      -       -  42,'J 


CHAPTER  IV. 

SCOURING  OR  RENOVATING  ARTICLES  OF  DRESS,  ETC. 

Nature  of  Scouring  Operations — Chemical  knowledge  indispensable  to  the 
Scourer — Should  be  a  Practical  Dyer— Simple  Stains— Compound  Stains 
— Nature  of  Stains  and  the  best  methods  of  removing  them — Bleaching  and 
removing  Stains  from  Books — Removing  Grease,  &c,  from  cloth — Allaire's 
patent  process.  43G 


PART  SIXTH. 

DYEING   AND  CALICO-PRINTING. 

CHAPTER  I. 

GENERAL    OBSERVATIONS    ON    CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES,  MOR- 
DANTS, MADDERING,  ETC.  442 


CHAPTER  II. 

RECENT  INVENTIONS    AND    IMPROVEMENTS    IN  DYEING  AND  CAL- 
ICO-PRINTING PROCESSES,  DYEING,   DRYING,   FINISHING.  ETC.     -  465 


XX  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III. 

rage. 

RECENT    INVENTIONS    AND    IMPROVEMENTS  IN  DYEING  AND  CAL- 
ICO-PRINTING PROCESSES,  BLOCK-PRINTING,  HAND  AND  POWER.  490 

CHAPTER  IV. 

RECENT    INVENTIONS    AND  IMPROVEMENTS  IN  DYEING  AND  CAL- 
ICO-PRINTING PROCESSES,   CYLINDER-PRINTING,  ETC.  -        -        -  524 

CHAPTER  V. 

CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES,  THE  MADDER,  PADDING,  AND  RESIST 
STYLES.       -  -  -       -  536 

CHAPTER  VI. 

CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES,  THE  DISCHARGE  STYLE,  CHINA-BLUE 
STYLE,  STEAM  COLORS,  ETC  560 


APPENDIX. 


Accidental  colors — Acetate — Acetate  of  Lead — Acidimetry — Acidulated — Adul- 
teration —  Affinity —  Alizarine — Alkali — Alkalimeter — Alkana — Alkanet — 
Alum — Alumina — Aluminate  of  Potash — Ammonia — Analysis — Anhydrous 
Areometer — Arseniate  of  Potash — Arsenic — Astringents — Atomic  weights 
or  Atoms — Base — Bismuth — Blue  Vitriol—  Bran — British  Gum — Carbonates 
— Carbonate  of  Ammonia — Calcination — Calcium — Carburets — Caustic — 
Chalk — Chemistry — Chlorates — Chlorides — Chloride  of  Lime — Chlorine — 
Chromate  of  Lead — Chromate  of  Potash — Chromatics — Chromium — Cinna- 
bar— Clay — Color,  its  influence  on  Odors — Combination — Combustible — 
Combustion — Copperas — Corrosive  Sublimate — Crystallization — Cyanates 
— Cyanides — Cyanide  Ferro — Cyanogen — Cyanuret  of  Iron — Decantation 
— Decoction  —  Decrepitation  —  Deliquescent —  Deutoxide — Ebullition — Ef- 
fervescence— Efflorescence — Elective  Affinity — Essential  Oils,  or  Volatile 
Oils — Equivalents,  Chemical — Evaporation — Experiments  and  Observations 
on  Light — Fahrenheit — Fermentation — Ferric-cyanide  of  Potassium,  or  Red 
Prussiate  of  Potash — Ferro-cyanate,  or  Ferro-cyanide — Fibre — Filtration — 
Fuller's  Earth — Gall-Nuts,  substitute  for — Garancine — Granulation—Green 
Vitriol — Gum — Gum  Senegal — Gum  Tragacanth — Hermatic  Seal — Hydro- 
meter— Indigo — Iron   Mordants — Lazulite — Lemons — Lichens — Ligneous 


CONTENTS. 


XXI 


Page 

— Ligneous  matter — Litre — Lixiviation — Maceration — Manganese — Mani- 
pulation— Measure — Mother  Water — Muriate  of  Ammonia — Muriates  of 
Tin — Muriate  of  Zinc — Naphtha — Neutralization — Neutral  Salts— Nitrates 
— Oil  of  Turpentine— Oleic  Acid — Ox-gall — Oxidation,  or  Oxidizement — 
Oxide — Padding — Perchloridc  of  Tin — Peroxide  of  Iron— Peroxide  of  Tin- 
Potash,  or  Potassa — Potter's  Clay,  or  Plastic  Clay — Precipitate — Precipita- 
tion— Protoxide  of  Copper — Protoxide  of  Iron — Protoxide  Tin — Putrefac- 
tion— Prussian  Blue — Pyrometer — Red  Liquor — Sal  Ammoniac — Salop — 
Salt — Salt,  Microcosmic — Salt  of  Lemons — Salt  of  Saturn — Salt  of  Soda — 
Salt  of  Sorrel— Salt  of  Tarter— Salt  of  Vitriol— Salt  of  Perlate— Saltpetre- 
Saturation — Scheele's  Green— Silicates — Soap — Soda — Specific  Gravity — 
Starch — Steatite  —  Sublimation — Subsalt — Sulphates — Sulphate  of  Alu- 
mina and  Potassa — Sulphate  of  Ammonia — Sulphate  of  Copper — Sulphate 
of  Iron — Sulphate  of  Lead — Sulphate  of  Magnesia — Sulphate  of  Manganese 
— Sulphate  of  Mercury — Sulphate  of  Potash — Sulphate  of  Soda — Sulphate 
of  Zinc— Sulphites— Sulphur — Sulphuration — Tannin— Tartar — Thermo- 
meter— Tartrate  of  Potash— Troy  weight— Turpentine,  Oil  of— Ultramarine 
— Vapor — Verdigris — Vermilion — Water  of  Crystallization — Weight.        -  601 


PRACTICAL  TREATISE  ON  THE  ARTS 


OF 

DYEING  AID  CALICO-PRINTING. 


PART  FIRST. 


CHAPTER  I. 

HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 

Colors  of  the  Vegetable  Kingdom — Origin  of  Dyeing — Celebrity  of  the  Purple, 
Scarlet,  and  Blue  Dyes  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  Tyrians,  and  Israelites — 
Homer  and  Ovid's  mention  of  Purple  Garments — Varieties  of  Purple,  and  Pro- 
cesses of  Dyeing  them,  described  by  Goguet  and  Heeren — Pliny's  account  of 
Purple  Robes — Swinburne's  description  of  the  Purple  Dye — Scarlet  (of  the 
Scriptures),  probable  method  of  Dyeing  it  in  the  time  of  Moses — Antiquity  of 
Adrianople  Red — Topical  Dyeing  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians  and  Phoenicians, 
and  Indians — Block-Printing  in  China — Origin  of  Calico-Printing — Dyeing  by 
the  Mexicans. 

The  study  of  the  true,  the  good,  and  the  beautiful,  has 
formed  an  important  occupation  of  life  in  all  highly  civilized 
nations,  and  has  been  inculcated  by  the  truest  patriots  and 
the  highest  philanthropists.  Science,  virtue,  and  beauty,  form 
the  noblest  elements  of  creation,  and  of  the  human  soul — 
they  form  the  first  objects  of  our  national  institutions,  the 
highest  elements  of  a  national  character,  and  the  best  themes 
of  a  national  literature. 

Amongst  the  various  phenomena  of  nature,  there  is  not  one 
that  more  excites  our  admiration,  or  imparts  a  more  vivid  im- 
pression of  the  order,  variety,  and  harmonious  beauty  of  the 
creation,  than  that  of  color.    On  the  general  landscape  this 

1 


2 


HISTORICAL  AND   GENERAL  REMARKS. 


phenomenon  is  displayed  in  the  production  of  that  chromatic 
beauty  in  which  the  elements  of  color  are  so  variously  and 
harmoniously  blended,  and  in  which  they  are  by,  light,  shade, 
and  distance,  modified  in  such  an  infinity  of  gradation  and 
hue.  Although  genius  is  continually  struggling  with  but 
partial  success  to  imitate  those  effects,  yet,  through  the  Di- 
vine beneficence,  all  whose  organs  of  sight  are  in  an  ordinary 
degree  of  perfection  can  appreciate  and  enjoy  them.  In 
winter  this  pleasure  is  often  to  a  certain  extent  withdrawn, 
while  the  colorless  snow  alone  clothes  the  surface  of  the 
earth;  but  this  is  only  a  pause  in  the  general  harmony, 
which,  as  the  spring  returns,  addresses  itself  the  more  pleas- 
ingly to  our  perception  in  its  vernal  melody:  this,  again, 
gradually  resolving  itself  into  the  full  rich  tones  of  luxuriant 
beauty  exhibited  in  the  foliage  and  flowers  of  summer,  which 
subsequently  rise  into  the  more  vivid  and  powerful  harmonies 
of  autumn's  coloring,  prepares  the  eye  again  to  enjoy  that 
rest  which  such  exciting  causes  may  be  said  to  have  rendered 
necessary. 

When  we  pass  from  the  general  coloring  of  nature  to  that  - 
of  particular  objects,  we  are  again  rapt  in  wonder  and  admi- 
ration by  the  beauty  and  harmony  which  so  constantly  and  in 
such  infinite  variety  present  themselves  to  our  view,  and 
which  are  so  often  found  combined  in  the  most  minute  objects. 
But  the  systematic  order  and  uniformity  perceptible  amidst 
this  endless  variety  in  the  coloring  of  animate  and  inanimate 
nature,  is  another  characteristic  of  beauty  equally  prevalent 
throughout  the  creation. 

To  imitate  nature  in  this  profusion*  of  beauty,  is  and  has 
been  the  pride  of  man  in  all  ages,  and  in  all  ranks  and  condi- 
tions of  life.  The  desire  of  attracting  public  admiration 
may  be  observed  even  in  the  least  civilized  state  of  society. 
Among  the  means  of  distinction  which  are  eagerly  laid  hold 
of,  the  glare  of  colors  is  one  of  the  most  obvious.  The  savage 
with  whom  clothing  forms  no  object  of  ambition,  tatoos  and 
daubs  his  body  with  all  the  various  colors  his  ingenuity  can 
prepare ;  while  the  civilized  man,  by  a  process  more  refined, 
imparts  the  color  to  his  clothing.    From  this  passion  of  en- 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


3 


deavoring  to  imitate  nature  in  all  that  is  beautiful,  have 
sprung  up  the  two  kindred  arts,  dyeing  and  painting.  Of 
the  latter,  the  public  have  already  the  highest  conceptions, — 
kings  have  taken  it  under  their  protection,  and  poets  have 
sung  its  praises ;  but  the  former,  though  all  enjoy  its  advan- 
tages, remains  in  comparative  obscurity. 

The  art  of  dyeing  has,  as  we  shall  endeavor  to  show,  un- 
questionably a  very  ancient  origin ;  for  when  nature  afforded 
coloring  substances  of  easy  application,  there  might  arise 
among  people  but  slightly  civilized,  methods  of  dyeing  which 
have  been  sought  after  by  polished  nations. 

From  the  writings  of  Moses,  it  is  obvious  that  the  art  of 
dyeing  had  in  his  time  made  great  progress :  it  was  certainly 
known  in  Jacob's  time,  as  we  find  from  Joseph's  coat  of  many 
colors,  and  also  from  the  scarlet  thread  which  the  midwife 
tied  about  the  hand  of  one  of  Thamar's  children.  How  much 
earlier  this  art  was  known,  it  is  impossible  to  ascertain ;  its 
high  antiquity,  however,  is  easily  accounted  for.  Most  of  the 
materials  fit  to  be  manufactured  into  tissues  are  of  dull  and 
sombre  colors,  and  men  would  naturally  seize  the  first  hints 
that  offered  of  obviating  the  unpleasant  uniformity  of  the 
dress  thus  produced. 

It  is,  perhaps,  also  equally  probable,  that  in  proportion  as 
society  advanced,  and  a  division  of  Labour  became  convenient, 
an  improved  knowledge  was  acquired,  not  only  of  spinning 
and  weaving,  but  in  that  of  breeding  and  selecting  those  ani- 
mals, whether  sheep  or  goats,  which  gave  the  finest  of  fleeces. 
We  may  imagine  that  in  the  earliest  state  of  the  Woolen 
Manufacture,  when  cloth  was  merely  a  substitute  for  the 
skins  of  beasts  as  an  article  of  clothing,  little  attention  was 
paid  to  the  color  or  fineness  of  the  wool ;  but  as  luxuries  were 
introduced,  colored  garments  were,  required,  and  the  wool 
could  no  longer  be  taken  from  sheep  of  every  kind,  white, 
brown,  or  black.  The  grower,  therefore,  began  to  pay  more 
particular  attention  to  the  whiteness  and  beauty  of  his  fleece, 
which  was  essential  to  render  the  cloth  susceptible  of  the  bril- 
liant dyes,  and  which,  as  we  shall  show,  were  given  to  it  at  a 
very  remote  period : — 


4 


HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


Gen.  xxxviii.  3.  Now  Israel  loved  Joseph  more  than  all  his  children,  because 
he  was  the  son  of  his  old  age,  and  he  made  him  a  coat  of  many  colors. 

The  value  and  distinction  attached  to  such  variegated 
dresses,  shows  that  they  were  not  common,  and  were  formed 
by  some  elaborate  process.  This  continued  long  after  the 
time  of  David;  such  a  dress  was  a  distinction  for  a  king's 
daughter,  2  Samuel,  xiii.  18 : — "  And  she  had  a  garment  of 
divers  colors  upon  her,  for  with  such  robes  were  the  king's 
daughters  that  were  virgins  apparaled ;"  and  Judges  v.  30 : — 
"Have  they  not  divided  the  prey;  to  Sisera  a  prey  of  divers 
colors  of  needlework  on  both  sides,  meet  for  the  necks  of  them 
that  take  the  spoil?"  Here  we  see  ladies  anticipating  the  re- 
turn of  a  victorious  general,  with  a  prey  of  divers  colors  of 
needlework  on  both  sides.  We  may,  therefore,  infer  that  in 
those  times  people  did  not  wear  variegated  dresses,  the  com- 
mon use  of  which  must  have  been  consequent  on  the  dis- 
covery of  the  art  of  dyeing,  interweaving  a  variegated  pattern 
in  the  original  textures,  or  of  printing  it  subsequently.  Dr. 
Roberts  states,  that  in  India  it  is  now  customary  to  invest  a 
beautiful  or  favorite  child  with  a  coat  of  many  colors,  consist- 
ing principally  of  crimson,  purple,  and  other  colors,  which  are 
often  tastefully  sewed  together.  He  adds,  "A  child  being 
clothed  in  a  garment  of  many  colors,  it  is  believed  that 
neither  tongue  nor  evil  spirit  will  injure  him,  because  the  at- 
tention is  taken  from  the  beauty  of  the  person  to  that  of  the 
garment." 

"  In  reading  the  following  texts  of  Scripture,"  says  BischofT,* 
"  it  had  frequently  occurred  to  me,  that  the  colors  so  named 
could  not  apply  to  fine  linen,  for  if  that  were  the  case  it 
would  have  been  more  clearly  expressed,  without  the  word 
'  and '  preceding  lfne  linen?  viz :  '  blue  and  purple  and  scar- 
let fine  linen.'  And  in  Exodus  xxvi.,  the  1  and '  betwixt  '  fine 
linen,'  and  the  c  blue,'  &c,  makes  a  marked  distinction  betwixt 
them,  so  as  to  show  that  the  color  did  not  apply  to  the  linen. 
This  construction  appeared  the  more  probable,  because  the 
full  lustre  and  beauty  of  the  color  cannot  now  be  given  to 

*  BischofFs  Treatise  on  the  Woolen  and  Worsted  Manufactures  of  Great  Bri- 
tain, vol.  i.  p.  17.  London:  Smith,  Elder  &  Co. 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING.  5 

vegetable  materials,  and  consequently  that  part  of  the  art  of 
dyeing  must  have  been  lost.  It  therefore  appears  most  prob- 
able, that  as  they  could  not  mean  '  linen,'  they  might  or  did 
mean  woolen  manufacture : — 

Exod.  xxv.  3.  And  this  is  the  offering  which  ye  shall  take  of  them ;  gold,  and 
silver,  and  brass, 

4.  And  blue,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,  and  fine  linen,  and  goats'  hair. 

Exod.  xxvi.  1.  Moreover  thou  shalt  make  the  tabernacle  with  ten  curtains  of 
fine  twined  linen,  and  blue,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,  &c. 

Exod.  xxviii.  6.  And  they  shall  make  the  ephod  of  gold,  of  blue,  and  of  pur- 
ple, of  scarlet,  and  fine  twined  linen,  with  cunning  work. 

"With  a  view  to  ascertain  this  point,"  says  Mr.  B.,  "I  ap- 
plied to  Professor  Hurwitz,  who  sent  me  the  following  note : — 

Dear  Sir, — In  reply  to  your  note,  permit  me  to  say,  you 
are  quite  correct  in  your  conjecture.  Our  most  ancient  com- 
mentators have  been  of  the  same  opinion:  the  Talmud. 
Tarchi,  Aben  Ezra,  &c.  Mendlesohn,  in  his  German  trans- 
lation, renders  Exodus  xxv.  4,  'Himmel  blaue,  purpur  rothe, 
und  hoch  rothe  woolle  ;  und  linen  garn,'  &c;  although  strictly, 
speaking  the  Hebrew  words  nban — sky  blue,  •panx  purple, 
and  iDia  nsbin  — designate  only  the  colors.  In  the  instance 
as  cited,  the  word  "ras — wool  is  understood : — • 

Numb.  iv.  6.  And  shall  put  thereon  the  covering  of  badgers'  skins,  and  shall 
spread  over  it  a  cloth  wholly  of  blue,  and  shall  put  in  the  staves  thereof. 

7.  And  upon  the  table  of  the  shew  bread,  they  shall  spread  a  cloth  of  blue,  and 
put  thereon  the  dishes,  and  the  spoons,  and  the  bowls,  and  covers  to  cover  withal ; 
and  the  continual  bread  shall  be  thereon. 

8.  And  they  shall  spread  upon  them  a  cloth  of  scarlet,  and  cover  the  same  with 
a  covering  of  badgers'  skins,  and  shall  put  in  the  staves  thereof. 

The  word  'cloth'  of  our  translation  corresponds  with  the 
Hebrew  isa,  beged,  which  means  generally  a  garment,  a 
cloth  used  for  covering,  made  either  of  linen  or  wool ;  but  in 
the  present  instance  tradition  tells  us  they  were  coverings 
made  of  wool,  of  the  several  colors  mentioned  in  the  text. 

"  The  information  thus  given  appears  to  establish  the  point 
as  to  the  early  woolen  manufacture,  and  looking  to  the  facil- 
ity and  simplicity  with  which  that  would  be  carried  on,  as 
compared  with  the  linen  manufacture,  it  is  most  probable  that 
for  a  long  period  the  woolen  manufacture  was  the  only  one 


6 


HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


known,  and  was  indicated  by  the  names  of  the  colors  alone. 
The  same  taste  for  colors  still  remains  in  the  East,  and  the 
art  of  dyeing,  which  may  have  originated  there,  was  carried 
to  great  perfection,  having  many  of  the  dyeing  materials  pro- 
duced there :  the  brilliancy  of  the  colors  is  seen  in  the  rich 
carpets  of  Persia  and  Turkey;  and  Mr.  Fellows  mentions 
their  prevalence  in  the  saddle-bags,  carpets,  and  cushions,  as 
worked  of  various  hues,  and  made  in  the  families  of  the  shep- 
herds."* 

Tyre  appears  to  have  been  the  only  city  of  antiquity  which 
made  dyeing  its  chief  occupation,  and  the  staple  of  its  com- 
merce. There  is  little  doubt  that  purple,  the  sacred  symbol 
of  royal  and  sacerdotal  dignity,  was  a  color  discovered  in  that 
city ;  and  that  it  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to  its  opu- 
lence and  grandeur. 

Goguet  and  Heeren  have  respectively  brought  much  inter- 
esting information  with  regard  to  the  purple  of  antiquity,  and 
from  their  works  the  following  particulars  are  chiefly  drawn : 

"  The  pre-eminence  given  at  the  present  day  to  purple,  as  a 
royal  color,  is  undoubtedly,  a  result  of  the  ancient  preference, 
which  arose  when  the  relative  superiority  of  purple  to  other 
colors  was  greater  than  at  present.  We  have  seen  the  color 
frequently  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  works  of  the 
tabernacle  and  the  dress  of  the  High  Priests :  and  among  the 
heathen  we  know  that  the  color  was  considered  peculiarly  ap- 
propriate to  the  service  of  the  gods.  The  Babylonians  and 
other  nations  used  to  array  their  gods  in  robes  of  purple.  An 
opinion  was  even  entertained  that  in  the  purple  dye  there  lay 
some  peculiar  virtue  for  appeasing  the  wrath  of  the  gods. 
Purple  was  also  the  distinguishing  mark  of  great  dignities 
among  several  nations.  It  is  said  that  when  the  beautiful 
purple  of  Tyre  was  first  discovered,  the  sovereign  to  whom  it 
was  presented  appropriated  it  as  a  royal  distinction.  Homer 
intimates  that  it  was  worn  only  by  princes,  and  that  limita- 


*  Those  who  desire  more  copious  information  on  these  subjects,  should  consult 
the  "  Pastoral  Life  and  Manufactures  of  the  Ancients,"  notices  of  which  work  will 
be  found  at  the  end  of  this  volume. 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


7 


tion  of  its  use  was  common  with  the  nations.  A  very  early 
notice  of  this  occurs  in  Scripture,  when  the  king  of  the  Mi- 
dians,  defeated  by  Gideon,  was  described  as  being  clothed  in 
purple  raiment.  Judges,  viii.  26,  "  And  the  weight  of  the  gold 
ear-rings  that  he  requested  was  a  thousand  and  seven  hun- 
dred shekels  of  gold,  besides  ornaments  and  collars  and  purple 
raiment,  that  was  on  the  kings  of  the  Midians."  It  seems  to 
us  very  likely  that  there  were  several  purples,  held  in  various 
degrees  of  estimation :  it  was  only  some  particular  shade  of 
purple  that  was  reserved  for  a  god-like  or  royal  distinction. 

It  is,  indeed,  important  to  understand  that  the  word  purple 
in  ancient  writings  does  not  denote  one  particular  color.  Pliny 
mentions  the  difference  between  some  of  the  purples :  one  was 
ufai?it,  approaching  to  a  scarlet,"  and  that  was  the  least  es- 
teemed ;  another  was  "  a  very  dull  red,  approaching  to  a 
violet and  a  third  was  a  color  compared  to  "coagulated 
bullock's  blood"  The  most  esteemed  Tyrian  purple  seems 
to  have  been  of  the  last  color :  we  say  the  most  esteemed,  be- 
cause it  appears  that  even  the  Tyrian  purple  was  not  one  par- 
ticular color,  but  a  class  of  animal  dyes  as  distinguished  from 
vegetable,  varying  in  shades  of  purple  from  the  most  faint  to 
the  most  intense.  It  is  to  be  understood,  however,  that  the 
Tyrian  purples  were  more  esteemed  than  any  other  colors,  al- 
though they  differed  in  degree  of  value.  Of  the  vegetable 
purples  we  know  nothing ;  most  of  the  information  relates  to 
the  purple  of  the  Phoenicians.  Their  dye  was  obtained  from 
several  varieties  of  shell-fish,  comprehended  under  two  spe- 
cies,— one  (Buccinum)  found  in  cliffs,  and  the  other  (Purpura 
or  Pelagia)  which  was  the  proper  purple  fish  taken  at  sea : 
the  first  was  found  on  the  coast  of  the  Mediterranean  and  At- 
lantic, and  locally  differed  in  the  tint  and  value  of  the  dye 
which  they  furnished.  The  Atlantic  shell  afforded  the  darkest 
color  ;  and  those  of  the  Phoenician  coast  itself,  and  in  general 
on  the  southern  coast  of  the  Mediterranean,  yielded  scarlet 
colors. 

The  Greeks,  who  were  never  at  a  loss  to  invent  an  inge- 
nious fable  to  cover  their  ignorance  of  origin  and  causes,  attrib- 
uted the  discovery  of  purple  to  the  dog  of  Hercules,  which  it 

3 


8 


HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


is  said,  "  in  a  range  along  the  shore,  instigated  by  hunger,  met 
with  a  shell-fish,  and  greedily  crushed  it  between  its  teeth : 
instantly  an  indelible  purple  stained  its  muzzle,  and  which 
color  was  afterwards  applied  to  the  dyeing  of  wool  with  great 
success." 

"  Colored  dresses,"  says  Pliny,*  "  were  known  in  the  time 
of  Homer  (who  is  supposed  to  have  lived  B.  C.  900),  from  which 
the  robes  of  triumph  were  borrowed." 

The  purple  mentioned  in  Exodus  was  probably  that  dyed 
by  the  Tyrians.  Ezekiel,  in  his  prophecy  against  Tyre,  says  : 
"  Fine  linen  with  broidered  work  from  Egypt,  was  that  which 
thou  spreadest  forth  to  be  thy  sail ;  blue  and  purple  from  the 
isles  of  Elishah  was  that  which  covered  thee."  It  is  general- 
ly supposed,  that  by  Elishah,  Elis,  on  the  western  coast  of  the 
Greek  Peloponnesus,  was  referred  to :  hence  it  would  appear 
that  the  Tyrians,  in  the  time  of  Ezekiel,  obtained  their  supply 
of  shell-fish  for  dyeing  purple  from  the  coast  of  Greece. 

Ovid,  in  his  description  of  the  contest  in  weaving  between 
Minerva  and  Arachne,  dwells  not  only  on  the  beauty  of  the 
figures  which  the  rivals  wove,  but  also  mentions  the  delicacy 
of  shading  by  which  the  various  colors  were  made  to  harmon- 
ize together : — 

Then  both  their  mantles  button'd  to  their  breast, 
Their  skilful  fingers  ply  with  willing  haste, 
And  work  with  pleasure,  while  they  cheer  the  eye 
With  glowing  purple  of  the  Tyrian  dye : 
Or  justly  intermixing  shades  with  light, 
Their  colorings  insensibly  unite 
As  when  a  shower,  transpierced  with  sunny  rays, 
Its  mighty  arch  along  the  heaven  displays ; 
From  whence  a  thousand  different  colors  rise 
Whose  fine  transition  cheats  the  clearest  eyes ; 
So  like  the  intermingled  shading  seems 
And  only  diners  in  the  last  extremes. 
Then  threads  of  gold  both  artfully  dispose, 
And,  as  each  part  in  just  proportion  rose, 
Some  antic  fable  in  their  work  disclose. — 

Metam.  vi. 

Swinburne,  in  his  Travels  in  the  Two  Sicilies,  gives  us  the 
*  Pliny,  viii.  48. 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING.  9 

following  interesting  account  of  the  purple  dye :— "  Near  the 
Alcanterine  convent  is  a  small  hillock,  wholly  formed  of  the 
shells  of  fish,  employed  by  the  ancients  in  the  composition  of 
the  purple  dye,  and  not  far  from  it  are  the  remains  of  some  re- 
servoirs and  conduits  appertaining  to  the  works.  My  readers 
may  not  be  sorry  to  meet  with  a  description  of  the  testaceous 
fishes  that  furnished  the  precious  ingredient,  and  of  the  me- 
thod used  in  extracting  and  preparing  it,  taken  from  the  ac- 
counts extant  in  the  classic  authors,  and  the  dissertations  of 
modern  naturalists. 

"  Purple  was  produced  from  two  sorts  of  shell-fish,  the  Mu- 
rex  and  the  Purpura,  both  belonging  to  the  testaceous  or 
third  genus  of  Linnaeus'  sixth  class.  From  the  former  a  dark 
blue  color  was  obtained ;  the  latter  gave  a  bright  tint,  ap- 
proaching to  scarlet.  The  body  of  the  animal  that  inhabits 
these  shells  consists  of  three  parts  ;  the  lowest  containing  the 
bowels,  remains  fixed  in  the  twisted  screws  at  the  bottom,  for 
the  purpose  of  performing  the  digestive  functions  ;  it  is  fleshy 
and  tinged  with  the  color  of  the  food ;  the  middle  division  is 
of  a  callous  substance  and  full  of  liquor,  which,  if  let  out  of  its 
bag,  will  stain  the  whole  animal  and  its  habitation ;  the  third 
and  upper  part  is  made  of  the  member  necessary  for  procuring 
food  and  propagating  the  race.  The  Murex  generally  re- 
mains fastened  to  rocks  and  stones ;  the  Purpura  being  a  fish 
of  prey,  is  by  nature  a  rover,  and  one  of  the  most  voracious 
animals  of  the  deep :  the  proper  season  for  dragging  for  this 
shell-fish  was  in  autumn  and  winter.  To  come  at  the  liquor, 
the  shell  was  broken  with  one  smart  blow,  and  the  pouch 
extracted  with  the  greatest  nicety  by  means  of  a  hook.  If 
the  shells  were  of  small  size,  they  were  thrown  by  heaps  into 
the  mill  and  pounded. 

"  The  veins  were  laid  in  a  cistern,  salt  was  strewed  over  them,  to  cause  them  to 
purge  and  keep  sweet,  in  the  proportion  of  twenty  ounces  of  salt  to  one  hundred 
pounds  of  fish.  They  were  thus  macerated  for  three  days,  after  which  the  muci- 
lage was  drawn  off  in  a  leaden  cauldron,  in  order  that  the  colors  (by  being  heated 
therein)  might  acquire  additional  lustre  and  vivacity,  as  all  marine  colors  do,  by 
mixture  with  that  metal.  To  keep  the  vessel  from  melting,  eighteen  pounds  of 
water  were  added  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  of  purple,  and  the  heat  given 
horizontally  to  the  bottom,  by  means  of  a  flue  brought  from  a  furnace.    By  this 

2 


10 


HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


process,  fleshy  particles  were  carried  off,  and  the  liquor  left  pure  after  about  ten 

days'  settling. 

"  The  dye  was  tried  by  dipping  locks  of  wool  in  it,  till  they 
had  imbibed  a  dark  blue  color.  As  the  color  of  the  murex 
would  not  stand  alone,  the  dyer  always  mixed  a  proportion 
of  purpura  juice  with  it.  They  steeped  the  wool  for  five 
hours,  then  shook,  dried,  and  carded  it ;  dipped  it  in  again 
and  again,  till  it  was  saturated  with  the  dye.  The  prepara- 
tion requisite  for  staining  501bs.  of  wool,  with  the  finest  deep 
amethyst  color,  was  twenty  pounds  murex  to  one  hundred 
and  ten  pounds  of  purpura.  To  produce  the  Tyrian  purple, 
which  resembles  the  color  of  coagulated  blood,  it  was  neces- 
sary, first  to  steep  the  wool  in  pure  unboiled  purpura  juice, 
and  then  let  it  lie  and  simmer  with  that  of  the  murex.  By 
different  mixtures  of  these  two  dyes,  varieties  were  obtained 
according  to  the  changes  of  fashion,  which  ran  into  violet  till 
the  reign  of  Augustus,  when  it  inclined  to  the  Tarentine 
scarlet ;  and  this  soon  afterwards  made  way  for  the  Dyabasa 
Tyrica,  the  most  extravagant  dye  of  all  the  tints.  We  read 
of  fleeces  being  dyed  upon  the  backs  of  sheep,  but  remain 
in  the  dark  as  to  the  method  and  advantage  of  that  process." 

Notwithstanding  the  enormous  price  of  purple  in  the  time 
of  Augustus,  the  Roman  emperor,  such  was  the  wealth  accu- 
mulated in  that  capital,  that  many  of  the  leading  citizens 
decorated  themselves  in  purple  attire,  till  the  emperors  arro- 
gated to  themselves  the  privilege  of  wearing  it,  and  prohibited 
its  use  to  every  other  person.  This  prohibition  operated  so 
much  to  discourage  the  art,  as  eventually  to  occasion  its  ex- 
tinction, first  in  the  Western,  and  then  in  the  Eastern  empire, 
in  the  latter  of  which,  however,  it  existed  in  several  imperial 
manufactories  till  the  eleventh  century. 

There  has  been  some  difference  of  opinion  respecting  the 
scarlet  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures  :  some  think  it  is  merely 
one  of  the  Phoenician  purples  produced  from  the  shell-fish : 
others  hesitate  to  say  whether  the  crimson  or  scarlet  is  in- 
tended by  the  word  "  scarlet,"  and  by  its  equivalent  in  other 
languages.  Besides  the  dye  produced  by  the  murex,  a  crim- 
son or  scarlet  was  found  in  ancient  times  obtained  from  an 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


11 


insect  akin  to  the  American  cochineal,  but  producing  a  most 
inferior  color.  The  insect  was  called  Kermes*  (whence  the 
name  carmine  crimson)  by  the  Arabs,  and  Coccus  by  the 
Greeks  and  Romans.t  The  female  insect  is  about  the  size 
and  shape  of  a  pea,  of  deep  violet  color,  powdered  with  white, 
found  chiefly  on  the  leaves  of  a  species  of  evergreen  oak 
shrub  (ilex  aculcata)  which  grows  in  different  parts  of  Wes- 
tern Asia  and  the  whole  of  Europe.  Now,  that  the  color 
afforded  by  this  insect  was  the  scarlet  of  Moses,  seems  tolera- 
bly clear.  The  word  rendered  "  scarlet"  in  the  books  of 
Moses,  was  a  worm ;  and  according  to  the  analogy  in  the  use 
of  the  word,  kermes  would  literally  be  rendered  "  wormdye" 
The  word  is  variously  interpreted  to  mean  either  "  double 
dyed,"  or  "  the  best  scarlet,"  and  seems  to  have  been,  accord- 
ing to  another  derivation,  "  bright  deep  red  dye  :"  the  terms 
together  seem  sufficiently  to  point  out  a  species  of  coccus, 
doubtlesss  the  coccus  ilius.  It  is  so  understood  by  the  Septu- 
agint  and  Vulgate.  Professor  Tychsen  tells  us  that  tola  was 
the  ancient  Phoenician  name  for  the  dye  used  by  the  Hebrews, 
and  even  by  the  Syrian  translation  in  Isaiah,  c.  i.  v.  18, 
"  Come  now,  and  let  us  reason  together,  saith  the  Lord : 
though  your  sins  are  as  scarlet,  they  shall  be  white  as 
snoio ;  though  they  he  red  like  crimson,  they  shall  be  as 
wool?  After  the  captivity,  the  Jews  more  commonly  used 
the  Armenian  word  Zeheri.  The  same  learned  orientalist 
thinks  that  the  dye  was  discovered  by  the  Phoenicians,  and  if 
so,  and  if  they  were  the  great  managers  of  this,  as  well  as  of 
the  purple  dyes,  it  would  be  useful  to  ascertain  the  difference 
in  application,  appearance,  and  quality,  between  this  and  the 
purple  scarlet.    Was  their  former  scarlet  this,  or  that  pro- 

*  See  chapter  III.,  of  this  Part,  article  Kermes. 

t  In  Germany,  during  the  ninth,  twelfth,  thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  centuries, 
the  rural  serfs  were  bound  to  deliver  annually  to  the  convents,  a  certain  quantity 
of  kermes,  the  coccus  polonicus,  among  the  other  products  of  husbandry.  It  was 
collected  from  the  trees  upon  St.  John's  day,  between  eleven  o'clock  and  noon, 
with  religious  ceremonies,  and  was  therefore  called  Johannisblut  (Saint  John's 
blood),  as  also  German  cochineal.  At  the  above  period,  a  great  deal  of  the  Ger- 
man kermes  was  consumed  in  Venice,  for  dyeing  the  scarlet  to  which  that  city 
gives  its  name. 


12  HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


duced  by  the  shell-fish  ?  We  incline  to  think  it  was  the  coc- 
cus, and  that  the  scarlet  of  the  first  dyes  was  only  used  in 
modifying  the  purple ;  and  we  arrive  at  this  conclusion  be- 
cause, while  a  scarlet  is  mentioned  as  the  basis  of  the  ancient 
purple,  the  scarlet  is  always  noticed  as  something  distinct 
from  the  the  purple.  We  imagine  the  distinction  between  the 
two  has  been,  that  the  purple  scarlet  was  crimson,  while  the 
kermes  scarlet  was  the  red  scarlet,  or  perhaps  more  properly 
vermilion  (the  worm  scarlet).  Professor  Tychsen,  supposing 
the  identity  of  the  scripture  scarlet  with  the  kermes  estab- 
lished, properly  concludes  that  the  kermes-dye  was  known 
before  the  time  of  Moses  ;  that  the  dye  was  known  to  the 
Egyptians  at  the  time  of  Moses,  for  the  Israelites  must  have 
carried  it  along  with  them  from  Egypt ;  that  the  Arabs  re- 
ceived the  name  "  kermes"  with  the  dye  from  Armenia  or 
Persia,  where  it  was  indigenous,  and  had  been  long  known, 
and  that  that  name  banished  the  old  name  in  the  East,  as  the 
name  scarlet  has  in  the  West.  The  kermes  were,  perhaps, 
not  known  in  Arabia,  at  least  they  were  not  indigenous,  as 
the  Arabs  appear  to  have  had  no  name  for  them. 

The  art  of  dyeing  the  fine  red,  called  Turkey  or  Adrianople 
red,  on  thread  or  yarn,  has,  as  is  well  known,  been  practised 
in  the  Levant  from  a  very  remote  period,  and  from  whence  it 
was  introduced  into  Europe. 

The  ancient  Egyptians  and  Phoenicians  were  not  only 
acquainted  with  topical  dyeing,  or  the  art  of  producing  col- 
ored patterns  on  cloth,  but  also,  of  extracting  iron,  copper, 
gold,  silver,  lead,  and  tin  from  the  ores  containing  these 
metals.  They  extracted  soda  from  the  soil  in  which  that 
alkali  naturally  exists,  and  understood  the  means  of  purifying 
it :  they  procured  potash  from  the  ashes  of  plants,  and  made 
soap  by  combining  the  alkalis  with  oils  and  fats.  They  were 
acquainted  with  the  mode  of  converting  an  alkaline  carbonate 
into  a  caustic  alkali  by  the  action  of  quick-lime,  and  even 
took  advantage  of  this  property  of  lime  to  give  to  soda  (car- 
bonate of  soda)  a  degree  of  causticity  which  deceived  the 
purchasers  of  this  article  as  to  its  real  value.  The  arts  of 
making  earthenware,  glass  (both  colorless  and  colored),  porce* 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


13 


lain,  and  various  pigments,  and  certain  processes  in  dyeing, 
were  brought  to  a  state  of  perfection  not  exceeded,  nay,  in 
some  instances,  not  equalled,  by  artists  of  the  present  day. 

From  the  following  account  by  Pliny  of  the  nature  of  the 
process  of  topical  dyeing  practised  by  the  ancient  Egyptians, 
it  would  appear  that  this  people  had  attained  such  proficiency 
in  the  art,  as  could  only  have  been  originally  acquired  by  ex- 
tensive practice  and  close  observation. 

An  extraordinary  method  of  staining  cloths  is  practised  in  Egypt.  They 
there  take  white  cloths  and  apply  to  them,  not  colors,  but  certain  drugs  which 
have  the  power  of  absorbing  or  drinking  in  color ;  and  in  the  cloths  so  operated 
on  there  is  not  the  smallest  appearance  of  any  dye  or  tincture.  These  cloths  are 
then  put  in  a  cauldron  of  hot  coloring  matter,  and  after  having  remained  a  short 
time  are  withdrawn,  all  stained  and  painted  in  various  colors.  This  is  indeed  a 
wonderful  process,  seeing  that  there  is,  in  the  said  cauldron,  only  one  kind  of 
coloring  material,  yet  from  it  the  cloth  acquires  this  and  that  color,  and  the  boiling 
liquor  itself  also  changes,  according  to  the  quality  and  nature  of  the  dye-absorb- 
ing drugs  which  were  at  first  laid  on  the  white  cloth.  And  these  stains  or  colors, 
moreover,  are  so  firmly  fixed  as  to  be  incapable  of  being  removed  by  washing.  If 
the  scalding  liquor  were  composed  of  various  tinctures  and  colors,  it  would  doubt- 
less have  confounded  them  all  in  one  on  the  cloth ;  but  here  one  liquor  gives  a 
variety  of  colors,  according  to  the  drugs  previously  applied.  The  colors  of  the 
cloths  thus  prepared  are  always  more  firm  and  durable  than  if  the  cloths  were  not 
dipped  into  the  boiling  cauldron.* 

From  this  it  is  evident  that  the  cloth  was  prepared  before 
steeping ;  the  momentary  effect  he  mentions  could  only  be 
produced  by  the  powerful  agency  of  mordants,  and  they  not 
only  used  them  to  make  the  cloth  take  the  color  equally,  but 
also  to  change  the  hues. 

Herodotus  (book  1.  c.  203,)  gives  us  the  following  account 
of  a  nation  on  the  borders  of  the  Caspian,  who  painted 
figures  of  animals  on  their  garments  with  a  vegetable  dye : — ■ 

"They  have  trees  whose  leaves  possess  a  most  singular 
property :  they  beat  them  to  powder,  and  then  steep  them  in 
water :  this  forms  a  dye,  with  which  they  paint  on  their  gar- 
ments figures  of  animals.  The  impression  is  so  very  strong 
that  it  cannot  be  washed  out ;  it  appears  to  be  interwoven  in 
the  cloth,  and  wears  as  long  as  the  garment." 


*  Pliny,  Hist.  Nat.,  lib.  xxxv.  cap.  11. 


14 


HISTORICAL  AND  GENERAL  REMARKS. 


He  does  not,  however,  state  the  material  of  which  the  gar- 
ments were  made.  Strabo,  and  the  author  of  the  Periplus, 
also  celebrate  the  beautiful  flowered  cottons  of  India,  and  the 
brilliant  and  various  dyes  of  that  country.  And  from  the 
very  early  civilization  of  the  Indians,  and  their  stationary 
condition  for  several  thousand  years,  it  may  be  inferred  that 
calico-printing  existed  amongst  them  many  ages  before  the 
time  of  Alexander. 

"  In  Cambaia  there  is,"  says  Marco  Polo,  "  abundance  of 
cotton  cloth,  as  well  as  of  cotton  in  the  wool ;  and  a  great 
quantity  of  indigo  is  manufactured."* 

The  Chinese  practised  block  printing  before  any  species  of 
printing  was  known  in  Europe.  Calico  printing  is  practised 
in  Asia  Minor,  Turkey,  and  indeed  in  all  the  countries  of  the 
East,  by  such  means  and  processes  as  prove  clearly  the  Eas- 
tern origin  of  the  art.  The  processes  of  calico  printing  in 
India  are  described  in  certain  letters  written  by  Father  Coeur- 
doux,  a  missionary  at  Pondicherry,  published  in  Vol.  26,  of 
Recueil  des  Lettres  Ediflantes  et  Curieuses ;"  from  which  Dr. 
Bancroft  has  drawn  up  his  account  in  his  "Philosophy  of 
Permanent  Colors."f 

According  to  Clavigero,  the  Mexicans  were  acquainted  with 
the  art  of  dyeing  at  a  very  remote  period.  "  The  colors,"  he 
says,  "  of  the  cotton  were  extremely  fine."!  This,  however, 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  since  they  had  both  indigo  and 
cochineal  among  their  native  dyes. 

Calico-Printing  does  not  appear  to  have  been  practiced  in 
Europe  until  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  as  the 
History  of  the  art  since  that  period  is  well  known,  we  need 
not  offer  any  remarks  upon  the  subject.  For  the  space 
already  allotted  to  its  Ancient  History,  we  crave  the  indul- 
gence of  practical  dyers  and  calico  printers. 


*  "  Qui,"  says  Barbosa,  "si  lavorano  assai  tele  e  panni  di  gotton  bianchi,  sottili 
e  grossi  e  di  varie  sorte  tessuti  et  difinti."  Here  we  see  the  antiquity  of  the  print- 
ed calico  manufacture. 

t  Vol.  i.  p.  350. 

t  Clavigero's  History  of  Mexico,  book  vii. 


CHAPTER  II, 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 

Object  of  Dyeing  Operations — Theories  of  Light  and  Color — Analogy  between 
Color  and  Sound — Chemical  Knowledge  indispensable  to  the  Dyer — Elements 
of  Vegetable  Substances — Action  of  Acids  upon  them — Influence  of  Light  upon 
Vegetables — Coloring  Matter  of  Flowers — Application  to  Dyeing. 

The  great  object  of  all  dyeing  operations  is,  the  impregna- 
tion of  wool,  silk,  cotton,  linen,  hair,  and  skins,  with  coloring 
substances  derived  from  animals,  vegetables  and  minerals,  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  render  them  incapable  of  being  removed 
by  washing  with  water.  The  modes  of  effecting  this  object 
vary  as  greatly  as  the  coloring  matters  differ  from  each  other 
in  their  chemical  habitudes.  Though  the  chemical  re-actions 
which  are  exhibited  in  the  various  dyeing  and  printing  pro- 
cesses are,  for  the  most  part,  sufficiently  intelligible,  yet  they 
are  sometimes  of  a  highly  complex  character ;  and  the  theo- 
retical principles  of  a  few  valuable  processes,  discovered  acci- 
dentally, are  even  yet  but  imperfectly  understood. 

We  shall  in  this  chapter  consider  the  first  principles  of  the 
art,  referring  for  the  particular  dyes,  and  peculiar  treatment 
of  the  stuffs  to  be  dyed,  to  the  different  tinctorial  substances 
in  their  proper  places,  such  as  cochineal,  indigo,  madder,  &c; 
our  object  being  to  point  out  the  laws  upon  which  the  theory 
of  colors  depends,  and  the  necessity  of  practical  men  study- 
ing these  laws. 

Color  is  the  result  of  the  mutual  operation  of  the  active 
and  passive  principles  of  light  and  darkness ;  for  the  action 
of  light  being  partially  interrupted  in  the  production  of  this 
phenomenon,  every  color  is  consequently  allied  to  both — to 
the  latter  as  well  as  to  the  former.  Color  is  therefore  an  in- 
termediate phenomenon,  the  perception  of  which,  like  light 


16 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


itself,  is  conveyed  to  the  mind  through  the  most  perfect  of  our 
senses,  whether  in  regard  to  the  accuracy  and  variety  of  the 
information  it  affords  or  the  pleasure  we  derive  from  its  exer- 
cise. The  impression  made  upon  this  sense,  which  conveys 
to  the  understanding  the  perception  of  light  and  color,  we  re- 
ceive as  we  do  sound,  by  means  of  some  inherent  quality  in 
the  atmosphere ;  a  few  observations  upon  which,  and  upon 
the  manner  in  which  it  is,  or  may  be,  supposed  to  be  acted 
upon,  in  the  production  of  colors,  shall  be  here  attempted. 

Natural  philosophers  do  not  appear  to  have  yet  arrived  at  a 
precise  understanding  of  the  nature  and  properties  of  light, 
the  consequence  of  which  has  been  the  promulgation  of  many 
theories,  compounded  almost  wholly  of  mere  conjecture.  But 
the  first  theory  generally  adopted  as  correct,  was  the  hypo- 
thesis that  light  consists  of  excessively  minute  material  par- 
ticles, or  molecules,  thrown  off  from  the  luminous  body, 
whence  they  emanate  with  great  volocity;  diverging  in  all 
directions,  and  always  in  straight  lines.  This  theory  was 
conceived  by  Newton,  and  is  called  the  Newtonian  theory. 
The  particles  thus  thrown  off  are  supposed  to  be  possessed  of 
inertia,  and  endowed  with  attractive  and  repulsive  forces,  and 
are  emitted  from  all  luminous  bodies  with  nearly  the  same 
velocity,  about  200,000  miles  per  second; — that  they  differ 
from  each  other  in  the  intensity  of  the  attractive  and  repul- 
sive forces  which  reside  in  them ;  and  that,  impinging  on  the 
retina,  they  stimulate  it,  and  excite  vision ;  producing  color, 
at  the  same  time,  by  their  different  degrees  of  inertia.  It  is 
also  supposed  that  their  action  upon  the  molecules  of  material 
bodies,  and  vice  versa,  is  that  of  attraction  and  repulsion. 

Another  doctrine  maintains,  that  light  is  caused  by  the  in- 
dependent motion  of  an  imaginary  fluid  called  ether,  diffused 
throughout  all  space,  in  which  waves  or  undulations  are  pro- 
duced by  the  action  of  luminous  bodies,  and  propagated  in 
the  same  manner  as  sound  is,  by  serial  pulsations.  This  hy- 
pothesis was  advanced  by  Huygens,  and  is  called  the  Huyge- 
nian  theory.  The  fluid  or  elastic  medium  just  spoken  of,  is 
supposed  to  be  so  subtle  as  to  offer  no  appreciable  resistance 
to  the  motions  of  the  planets ;  and  is  believed  to  penetrate  all 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


17 


bodies,  but  to  possess  a  different  degree  of  intensity  and  elas- 
ticity in  their  interior,  to  that  which  belongs  to  it  in  a  disen- 
gaged state. 

But  neither  of  these  theories  seems  to  agree  with  many 
ascertained  facts  in  natural  philosophy;  nor  does  either  of 
them  account  in  a  satisfactory  manner  for  the  various  pheno- 
mena connected  with  the  transmission,  reflection,  refraction, 
and  velocity  of  light. 

If  light  be  composed  of  material  particles,  it  is  not  easy  to 
conceive  how  they  should  become  weaker  as  they  recede  from 
the  luminous  body  whence  they  emanated,  while  their  velo- 
city, as  is  admitted,  continues  the  same ;  nor  is  it  easy  to 
conceive  how  they  should  be  reflected  in  such  variety  from 
opaque  bodies,  and  change  their  character  when  transmitted 
through  those  that  are  transparent.  Besides,  material  particles 
emanating  in  straight  lines  from  a  convex  surface,  must  sep- 
arate and  become  more  diffused  as  they  recede  from  it ;  conse- 
quently, light,  under  such  circumstances,  instead  of  becoming 
gradually  weaker,  would  become  necessarily  mottled.  These, 
and  various  other  objections,  especially  that  regarding  the  trans- 
mission of  light  through  apparently  solid  bodies,  have  been  often 
raised  against  this  theory,  but  never  satisfactorily  answered. 

Again,  to  conceive  that  there  is  a  separate  and  distinct  fluid 
co-existing  with  the  common  atmospheric  air,  for  the  purpose  of 
conveying  light  by  undulation,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  for- 
mer is  acted  upon  by  vibratory  bodies  when  put  in  motion,  is 
to  conceive  a  complexity  of  means  greatly  at  variance  with  the 
general  simplicity  of  those  by  which,  so  far  as  they  have  been 
investigated,  the  other  wonderful  operations  of  nature  are  per- 
formed. Neither  does  such  a  supposition  appear  consistent 
with  many  facts  regarding  the  nature  and  properties  of  sound, 
nor  even  with  those  of  light,  as  ascertained  by  the  experiment- 
al enquiries  of  those  great  men  themselves  whose  names  have 
been  mentioned,  or  of  the  other  eminent  philosophers  who 
have  followed  out  their  investigations.  One  of  the  most  cele- 
brated of  the  latter*  observes,  "  the  fact  is,  that  neither  the 


*  Sir  J.  F.  W.  Herschel. 

3 


18 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


corpuscular,"  (the  Newtonian  theory,)  "  nor  the  undulatory," 
(the  Huygenian  theory,)  "  nor  any  other  system  which  has  yet 
been  devised,  will  furnish  that  complete  and  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  all  the  phenomena  of  light  which  is  desirable." 

The  atmosphere  has  been  ascertained  to  be  an  elastic  fluid, 
impenetrable,  inert,  movable,  and  possessed  of  a  certain  gravity, 
reducible  in  proportion  to  the  degree  of  attenuation  to  which 
it  may  be  subjected.  It  cannot  be  annihilated,  and  in  its  at- 
tenuated state  it  retains  the  same  proportions  in  its  gaseous 
elements.  The  fact  has  also  been  ascertained  that  the  at- 
mosphere, when  pure,  is  composed  of  two  gases,  with  the  ad- 
mixture of  a  small  proportion  of  aqueous  vapor  and  carbonic 
acid.*  We  know  that  it  is  at  the  same  time  the  common  re- 
ceptacle of  all  the  vapors  and  exhalations  that  arise  from  the 
earth,  and  which  diffuse  themselves  gradually  through  it,  and 
as  gradually  unite  again  by  the  principle  of  affinity  or  gravi- 
tation. To  each  of  the  elements  just  mentioned  as  constitu- 
ting by  their  combination  atmospheric  air,  a  specific  use  in  the 
economy  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  creation  may  be  as 
signed,  except  to  the  aqueous  vapor  ;  the  simple  fact  of  whose 
presence,  however,  is,  alone,  sufficient  assurance  of  its  having 
a  purpose  to  serve,  since  in  the  productions  of  nature  there 
is  nothing  superfluous.  Now,  as  the  atmosphere  is  admitted 
to  be  a  body,  may  we  not  suppose  that  it  is  constituted  like 
other  elastic  bodies,  though  it  cannot,  like  those  that  are  solid, 
be  brought  within  the  sphere  of  microscopical  investigation, 
and  that  this  aqueous  vapor  is  distributed  throughout  the 
atomic  interstices  in  the  form  of  an  infinitely  minute  and 
symmetrically  reticulated  fibrous  tissue,  susceptible  of  tension 
and  attenuation,  like  that  known  to  exist  in  animal  and  vege- 
table substances  ? 

By  such  a  supposed  distribution  of  the  aqueous  vapor,  an 


*  The  proportions  of  these  elements  are  as  follows : — 


By  Weight.  By  Measure 

Nitrogen  Gas,                   77.50  75.55 

Oxygen  Gas,                     21.00  23.32 

Aqueous  Vapor,                    1.41  1.03 

Carbonic  Acid,                     0.08  0.10 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


19 


ind  spendent  vehicle  of  sound  is  at  once  supplied,  and  the  gase- 
ous elements  of  the  atmosphere  left  to  perform  their  wonder- 
ful and  important  duties  in  the  economy  of  the  creation,  un- 
disturbed. By  such  a  supposition,  too,  regarding  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  atmosphere,  and  of  liquid  and  aeriform  bodies  gener- 
ally, their  various  capabilities  of  condensation  and  attenuation 
would  perhaps  be  more  easily  accounted  for ;  as  also  the  phe- 
nomenon in  accoustics  produced  by  the  attenuation  of  atmos- 
pheric air  under  the  receiver  of  an  air-pump,  when  it  so  far 
loses  its  vibratory  power  as  to  become,  in  consequence,  inca- 
pable of  conveying  sound.  The  supposition  here  hazarded, 
will  also  satisfactorily  account  for  the  greater  facility  with 
which  sound  is  transmited  in  the  lower  regions  of  the  atmos- 
phere, where  the  relative  proportion  of  the  aqueous  vapor  to 
that  of  the  gaseous  elements  is  greater  than  in  its  higher  re- 
gions. 

The  manner  in  which  smoke  and  other  visible  vapors  are 
observed  to  diffuse  themselves  through  the  atmosphere,  the 
phenomenon  of  snow  assuming  beautiful  hexagonal  figures, 
as  well  as  the  extremely  elegant  appearance  and  combinations 
which  hoar-frost  presents  when  minutely  examined,  favor  the 
supposition  now  advanced.  Because,  unless  there  were  in  the 
body  of  the  atmosphere  symmetrical  reticulation,  we  should 
not  find  in  snow-flakes  the  uniform  figures  which  they  present, 
and  which,  it  is  presumed,  they  could  not  otherwise  acquire 
than  by  passing  through  such  a  medium. 

The  gases  which  enter  into  the  composition  of  atmospheric 
air,  as  well  as  all  other  gases,  are,  according  to  a  well  estab- 
lished theory,  composed  of  atoms  or  molecules.  Now,  adopt- 
ing this  theory,  may  not  the  sun  or  any  other  luminous  body 
possess  a  power  of  acting  upon  the  atomic  particles  of  one  or 
both  of  these  gases  electrically  or  otherwise,  in  such  a  manner 
as  to  put  them  into  harmonic  motion  amongst  themselves,  each 
upon  its  own  axis,  and  rendering  them  luminous  by  friction, 
thus  producing  white  light  ?  May  not  the  partial  interruption 
or  change  in  the  mode  of  this  atomic  motion  produce  shades 
and  colors,  and  its  total  interruption  blackness  ?  As  every 
material  body  is  also  understood  to  be  composed  of  atoms  or 


20 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


molecules,  may  it  not  likewise  be  reasonably  supposed  that  the 
modes  of  arrangement,  or  the  configuration  of  these  atoms, 
render  them  capable  of  receiving  this  motion  of  light,  in  ways 
infinitely  various,  producing  every  variety  of  color  7  May 
not  dyeing  be  simply  the  production  of  a  change  in  the  ar- 
rahgement  of  the  atoms  of  which  the  substance  dyed  is  com- 
posed, thus  affecting  the  atomic  action  of  light  upon  its  sur- 
face ?  May  not  the  mode  of  arrangement  in  the  atoms  of  crys- 
tals and  other  transparent  media  be  thus  affected,  and  made 
to  communicate  a  like  motion  to  those  of  the  atmosphere  be- 
yond them,  producing  colored  light,  as  those  atoms  on  the 
surface  of  opaque  bodies  reflect  it  ? 

That  light  does  act  in  some  such  manner,  seems  certain, 
from  a  communication  made  on  20th  December  1843,  to  the 
Microscopical  Society,  by  Mr.  Ross,  relative  to  the  daguerreo- 
type process  first  noticed  by  Mr.  Solly — "If  an  ordinary 
daguerreotype  portrait  be  examined  with  a  power  of  about 
200  linear,  the  surface  in  the  parts  upon  which  the  light  has 
acted,  is  found  to  be  covered  with  a  series  of  minute  dots  oi 
globules  arranged  in  a  hexagonal  form."* 

It  seems  an  ascertained  fact,  though  by  the  theories  hither- 
to advanced  difficult  to  be  accounted  for,  that  the  velocity  of 
the  transmission  of  light  is  in  no  way  dependent  on  the 
strength  of  the  light  transmitted,  and  that  the  reflected  light 
of  the  moon  travels  with  equal  velocity  as  the  direct  light  of 
the  sun.  But  by  this  supposed  atomic  motion,  the  difficulty 
seems  removed  ;  for,  whether  rapid  or  slow  in  itself,  it  may  be 
communicated  with  equal  velocity,  in  the  same  manner  that 
the  rotatory  motion  of  a  notched  wheel,  at  the  end  of  a  sei'ies 
of  any  conceivable  length,  would  transmit  to  the  wheel  at  the 
other  end  a  similar  motion  almost  instantaneously. 

All  this  may  be  easily  supposed  to  take  place  independently 
of  any  vibration,  undulation,  or  other  motion  in  the  fibrous 
tissue,  or  even  in  the  gases  themselves,  for  we  know  that 
when  the  atmosphere  is  in  a  progressive  motion,  its  vibrations 
follow  the  direction  of  its  progress.    For  instance,  when  the 


*  AthencBum,  No.  844. 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


21 


wind  blows  strongly  from  east  to  west,  or  vice  versa,  a  sound 
is  not  transmitted  so  rapidly  or  distinctly  from  south  to  north 
as  when  the  wind  blows  in  that  direction ;  while  the  sun's 
rays,  or  those  of  any  other  light,  are  equally  direct,  and  pro- 
ceed with  the  same  velocity,  whatever  may  be  the  motion  of 
the  body  of  the  atmosphere  at  the  time.  It  may,  therefore, 
be  supposed,  that  the  motion  producing  light  and  color  is  im- 
parted to  the  atoms  while  following  the  course  of  the  general 
body  of  the  atmosphere  as  they  come  in  contact  with  those 
under  the  direct  influence  of  the  luminous  body,  and  that 
this  motion  is  communicated  with  the  rapidity  of  electricity, 
which  supposition  is  not  inconsistent  with  other  phenomena 
in  nature. 

The  hypothesis  that  variously  colored  rays  emanate  from 
the  sun,  each  possessing  a  different  degree  of  intensity,  has 
given  rise  to  the  supposition,  that  there  may  possibly  be  a 
multitude  of  rays  of  each  color  moving  with  various  veloci- 
ties, and  only  affecting  the  sense  when  they  have  the  velocity 
appropriate  to  that  color  in  the  eye.*  But  the  hypothesis  of 
atomic  motion  here  suggested,  is  independent  of  any  such 
complicated  process,  for  although  the  motion  it  supposes  to  be 
communicated  by  luminous  bodies  to  the  gaseous  atoms  may 
be  various,  the  progress  of  the  communication  may  be  per- 
fectly uniform.  This  hypothesis  may  also  satisfactorily  ac- 
count for  the  reduced  velocity  of  light  when  it  enters  a  denser 
medium. 

We  know  that  motion  produces  friction,  and  that  friction 
produces  electricity.  If  light,  therefore,  be  produced  by  mo- 
tion amongst  the  gaseous  atoms  that  enter  into  the  composi- 
tion of  all  matter,  the  mode  of  its  production  must  resemble 
that  of  electricity,  which  it  must  consequently  resemble  also 
in  its  nature. 

It  is  known  that  electricity  is  generated  in  the  atmosphere, 
in  greatest  quantities,  at  that  particular  season  of  the  year 
when  the  sun  exercises  the  greatest  influence  on  it — may  not 
this  atomic  friction  be  the  cause  ?    Friction  produces  heat, 


*  Encyclopaedia  Britannica. — Article,  Chromatics. 


22 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


heat  ignition,  and  ignition  produces  light.  If  the  rays  of  the 
sun  be  concentrated,  such  concentration  produces  the  effect 
of  friction  in  causing  ignition,  and  when  ignition  is  commu- 
nicated from  one  body  to  another,  rapid  motion  of  the  air 
which  surrounds  the  body  accompanies  its  decomposition. 

Goethe,  in  his  admirable  u  Theory  of  Colors,"  says,  "  In  ex- 
amining every  appearance  of  nature,  but  especially  in  exam 
ining  an  important  and  striking  one,  we  should  not  remain  in 
one  spot,  we  should  not  confine  ourselves  to  the  insulated  fact, 
nor  dwell  on  it  exclusively,  but  look  round  through  all  nature 
to  see  where  something  similar,  something  that  has  affinity 
to  it,  appears  ;  for  it  is  only  by  combining  analogies  that  we 
gradually  arrive  at  a  whole  which  speaks  for  itself,  and  re- 
quires no  further  explanation."  Such  an  analogy  is  found 
between  sound  and  light,  and  is  in  no  way  at  variance  with 
the  idea  of  light  being  the  result  of  an  independent  motion 
of  the  gaseous  molecules  in  the  atmosphere.  It  is  an  estab- 
lished fact,  that  sound  is  the  result  of  vibratory  motions  or 
undulations  produced  in  the  atmosphere,  similar  to  the  undu- 
lations of  water  into  which  a  stone  or  other  substance  has 
been  thrown,  with  this  difference,  that  in  the  one  case  they 
are  apparently  superficial,  in  the  other  known  to  be  spherical, 
diverging  equally  on  all  sides,  perpendicularly  and  laterally. 
The  effect  of  this  motion  in  the  atmosphere  is  far  from  being 
uniform  :  sound  is  undoubtedly  the  result,  but  this  result  is 
produced  in  various  degrees  of  modification  as  to  pitch  and 
tone,  and  these  degrees  have  been  ascertained  to  be  commu- 
nicated through  the  atmosphere  with  equal  velocity.  It  has 
also  been  ascertained,  that  a  musical  note  produced  by  this 
pulsatory  motion  in  the  atmosphere,  is  invariably  accompanied 
by  other  sounds  called  harmonies,  in  a  manner  quite  percep- 
tible to  a  fine  ear  ;  and  that  this  accompaniment  bears  the 
same  mathematical  relation  to  the  original  note  that  the 
three  primary  elements  of  color  bear  to  each  of  their  constit- 
uents. 

Sir  David  Brewster  has  shown,  that  no  refracting  power  is 
capable  of  perfectly  separating  the  three  colors  now  univer- 
sally acknowledged  to  be  the  primary  elements  of  chromatics  ; 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


23 


for  however  bright  they  may  be  made  to  appear  in  the  solar 
spectrum,  they  still  have  individually  an  admixture  of  one  of 
the  other  two.  We  are  thus  made  aware  that  not  only  do 
the  elements  of  sound  agree  in  number  with  those  of  color, 
but  also  in  their  affinities,  and  they  also  have,  in  their  effects 
upon  the  senses  to  which  they  are  respectively  addressed,  the 
most  perfect  analogy. 

The  more  we  investigate  the  operations  of  nature,  the 
more  we  become  convinced  of  the  simplicity  of  the  means  by 
which  the  phenomena  that  are  daily  attracting  our  attention 
are  performed.  If,  therefore,  we  can  account  for  the  phenom- 
ena of  light  and  color  as  satisfactorily  by  the  means  known 
to  exist,  as  by  supposing  the  necessity  of  material  particles, 
or  an  ethereal  fluid,  to  assist  these  ;  the  subject  is  simplified, 
and  so  far  agrees  with  the  facts  which  philosophy  has  brought 
within  the  sphere  of  our  knowledge. 

From  these  observations  it  is  obvious  that  the  dyer  in  order 
to  understand  the  nature  of  his  business,  and  to  give  the  best 
possible  effects  to  the  various  colors  he  produces,  should  be 
acquainted  with  the  laws  of  light  in  relation  to  colors. 
But,  were  he  to  take  this  alone  as  his  guide,  he  would  find 
that  in  attempting  to  realize  the  results  of  the  preceding 
theories  by  mixing  his  colors  accordingly,  in  some  instances 
he  would  not  succeed  ;  as  for  instance,  were  he  attempting 
to  produce  a  white  by  immersing  the  goods  in  a  mixture  of 
red,  yellow,  and  blue  colors,  he  would  get  a  brown — but  this 
does  not  invalidate  the  law  above  described,  and,  in  fact,  the 
practice  of  producing  white  by  the  combining  the  three  colors 
is  had  recourse  to  every  day  by  the  practical  bleacher  and 
dyer.  All  goods  coming  from  the  bleaching  process,  no  mat- 
ter what  the  nature  of  the  process  has  been,  have  always  a 
brownish  yellow  tinge  :  to  cotton  goods  a  little  indigo  or 
cobalt  blue  is  added,  and  the  result  is,  a  much  purer  white  : 
to  silk,  which  has  more  of  the  yellow  tinge  than  cotton,  a  little 
Prussian  blue  and  cochineal  pink  ;  or  what  is  more  common, 
a  little  archil,  which  gives  a  violet  color,  is  added  ;  the  quan- 
tity varying  according  to  the  depth  of  yellow — the  result  is  a 


24 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


beautiful  white.*  The  necessity  of  having  a  pure  white 
upon  goods  before  being  dyed,  and  the  best  means  of  obtain- 
ing this,  will  be  given  under  the  head  of  Bleaching.t 

The  scientific  theories  of  light  and  color  having  been  illus- 
trated, we  may  appropriately  offer  a  few  observations  on  the 
analogy  which  exists  between  color  and  sound. 

It  is  well  known  that  a  remarkable  conformity  exists  be- 
tween the  science  of  color  and  that  of  sound,  in  their  funda 
mental  principles,  as  well  as  in  their  effects.  We  shall  prob- 
ably best  lead  the  reader  to  a  proper  comprehension  of  the 
former  by  tracing  this  analogy,  the  more  especially  as  the 
science  of  music  is  much  more  generally  understood.  This 
analogy  will  help  to  show,  that  the  laws  which  govern  color 
are  as  irrefragable,  and,  at  the  same  time,  as  practically 
necessary  to  the  colorist  in  art,  manufacture,  or  decoration^ 
as  those  which  govern  sound  are  to  the  musician. 

It  is  well  known  to  all  who  have  studied  music,  that  there 
are  three  fundamental  notes,  viz.,  the  first,  third,  and  fifth  of 
the  scale,  represented  in  the  natural  key  of  C  major,  by  the 
letters  C,  E,  and  G.  These  notes,  when  sounded  together, 
produce  the  common  chord,  and  are  the  foundation  of  all 
harmony  in  musical  composition.  So  it  is  in  chromatics, — 
there  are  likewise  only  three  fundamental  colors, — blue,  red, 
and  yellow,  forming  the  triad  from  which  arises  all  harmony 
in  painting. 

By  the  combination  of  any  two  of  these  primary  colors,  a 
secondary  color  of  a  distinct  kind  is  produced ;  and  as  only 


*  In  Syme's  Nomenclature  of  Colors,  there  are  no  fewer  than  eight  different 
tints  of  white  enumerated  ;  and  although  the  terms  reddish  white,  &c,  are  rather 
anomalous,  yet  there  seems  no  other  way  of  denominating  the  lightest  tints  of 
colors.  For  instance,  when  the  lightest  tint  of  any  color  is  placed  beside  the  most 
intense,  it  will  appear  to  the  eye  a  pure  white ;  but  when  placed  beside  the  purest 
white,  the  color  will  appear  with  which  it  is  tinged.  Still  it  should  be  understood, 
that  if  it  be  a  single  shade  beyond  the  first  remove  or  gradation  from  pure  white, 
its  name  must  be  altered  to  a  light  tint  of  the  color  with  which  it  is  tinged. 

The  only  white  which  is  generally  understood  or  used  besides  the  purest  tint, 
is  French  white,  which  is,  properly  speaking,  the  lightest  tint  of  purple,  and  is 
of  all  colors  the  most  delicate  and  aerial. 

t  See  Bleaching,  Part  ii. ;  see  also  chapter  II.  Part  iii.,  article,  Purity  of  Water. 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


25 


one  absolutely  distinct  denomination  of  color  can  arise  from  a 
combination  of  the  three  primaries,  the  full  number  of  really 
distinct  colors  is  seven,  corresponding  to  the  seven  notes  in 
the  complete  scale  of  the  musician.  Each  of  these  colors  is 
capable  of  forming  an  archeus  or  key  for  an  arrangement,  to 
which  all  the  other  colors  introduced  must  refer  subordinately. 
This  reference  and  subordination  to  one  particular  color,  as  is 
the  case  in  regard  to  the  key-note  in  musical  composition, 
gives  a  character  to  the  whole. 

This  characteristic  of  an  arrangement  of  color  is  generally 
called  its  tone ;  but  it  appears  to  us  that  this  term  is  more  ap- 
plicable to  individual  hues,  as  it  is  in  music  to  voices  and  in- 
struments alone.  Yet,  to  avoid  obscurity,  we  shall  continue 
to  use  it  in  the  sense  in  which  it  is  generally  applied  to 
coloring. 

From  the  three  primary  colors,  as  will  be  afterwards  shown, 
arise  an  infinite  variety  of  hues,  tints,  and  shades ;  so  that  the 
dyer  or  colorist,  like  the  musician,  notwithstanding  the  limit- 
ed number  of  the  fundamental  parts  of  his  art,  has  ample 
scope  for  the  production  of  originality  and  beauty  in  the  vari- 
ous combinations  and  arrangements  of  which  they  are  sus- 
ceptible. 

The  three  homogeneous  colors,  yellow,  red,  and  blue,  have 
been  proved  by  Field,  in  the  most  satisfactory  manner,  to  be 
in  numerical  proportional  power  as  follows — yellow  three,  red 
five,  and  blue  eight. 

When  these  three  colors  are  reflected  from  any  opaque 
body  in  those  proportions,  white  is  produced.  They  are  then 
in  an  active  state,  but  each  is  neutralized  by  the  relative  effect 
that  the  others  have  upon  it.  When  they  are  absorbed  in  the 
same  proportions,  they  are  in  a  passive  state,  and  black  is  the 
result.  When  transmitted  through  any  transparent  body,  the 
effect  is  the  same ;  but  in  the  first  case  they  are  material  or 
inherent,  and  in  the  second  impalpable  or  transient.  Color, 
therefore,  depends  entirely  on  the  reflective  or  refractive 
power  of  bodies,  as  the  transmission  or  reflection  of  sound 
does  upon  their  vibratory  powers. 

From  the  combination  of  the  primary  colors  the  secondary 

4 


26 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


arise,  and  are  orange,  which  is  composed  of  yellow  and  red, 
in  the  proportion  of  three  and  five ;  purple,  which  is  composed 
of  red  and  blue,  in  the  proportion  of  five  and  eight;  and 
green,  composed  of  yellow  and  blue,  in  the  proportion  of  three 
and  eight.  These  are  called  the  accidental  or  contrasting 
colors  to  the  primaries,  with  which  they  produce  harmony  in 
opposition,  in  the  same  manner  in  which  it  is  effected  in 
music  by  accompaniment ;  the  orange  with  the  blue,  the  pur- 
ple with  the  yellow,  and  the  green  with  the  red.  These 
colors,  therefore,  neutralize  each  other  at  sixteen. 

This  neutralizing  or  compensating  power  is  the  foundation 
of  all  agreement  and  harmony  amongst  colors,  and  upon  it 
depends  also  the  brilliancy  and  force  of  every  composition. 

From  the  combination  of  these  secondaries  arise  the  ter- 
tiaries,  which  are  also  three  in  number,  as  follow :  olive,  from 
the  mixture  of  the  purple  and  green,  citron,  from  the  mixture 
of  the  green  and  orange,  and  russet,  from  the  mixture  of  the 
orange  and  purple.  These  three  colors,  however,  like  the 
compounds  produced  by  their  admixture,  may  be  reckoned 
under  the  general  denomination  of  neutral  hues,  as  they  are 
all  formed  by  a  mixture  of  the  same  ingredients ;  the  three 
primaries,  which  always,  less  or  more,  neutralize  each  other 
in  triunity.  The  most  neutral  of  them  all  being  grey,  and 
the  mean  between  black  and  white,  as  any  of  the  secondaries 
are  between  two  of  the  primaries,  it  may  appropriately  be 
termed  the  seventh  color.  These  tertiaries,  however,  stand 
in  the  same  relation  to  the  secondaries  that  the  secondaries  do 
to  the  primaries — olive  to  orange,  citron  to  purple,  and  russet 
to  green ;  and  their  proportion  will  be  found  to  be  in  the  same 
accordance,  and  neutralizing  each  other  integrally  as  32. 

Out  of  the  tertiaries  arise  a  series  of  other  colors,  such  as 
brown,  marone,  slate,  &c,  in  an  incalculable  gradation,  until 
they  arrive  at  a  perfect  neutrality  in  black.  To  all  these  the 
same  rules  of  contrast  are  equally  applicable. 

Besides  this  relation  of  contrast  in  opposition,  colors  have  a 
relation  in  series,  which  is  their  melody.  This  melody,  or 
harmony  of  succession,  is  found  in  all  the  natural  phenomena 
of  color.    Each  color  on  the  prismatic  spectrum,  and  in  the 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


27 


rainbow,  is  melodized  by  the  two  compounds  which  it  forms 
with  the  other  two  primaries.  For  instance,  the  yellow  is 
melodized  by  the  orange  on  the  one  side,  and  the  green  on  the 
other ;  the  blue  by  the  green  and  purple,  and  the  red  by  the 
purple  and  orange.  Field,  in  his  excellent  Essay  on  the 
Analogy  and  Harmony  of  Colors,  has  shown  these  coinci- 
dences by  a  diagram,  in  which  he  has  accommodated  the 
chromatic  scale  of  the  colorist  to  the  diatonic  series  of  the 
musician,  showing  that  the  concords  and  discords  are  also 
singularly  coincident.  It  is,  however,  too  complex  for  a  work 
of  this  kind ;  we  shall,  therefore,  content  ourselves  by  giving 
one  of  the  three  clefs  only,  as  in  the  following  example : — • 


We  cannot  conclude  this  part  of  the  subject,  without  notic- 
ing a  striking  coincidence  between  color  and  sound,  which 
seems  to  render  the  analogy  perfect.  We  have  already  men- 
tioned the  phenomenon  discovered  by  BufTon,  of  the  acciden- 
tal color  which  appears  with  any  given  color,  and  that  such 
accidental  or  compensating  color  makes  up  the  harmonious 
triad  or  concord.  This  is  precisely  the  case  when  any  given 
note  is  sounded  on  an  instrument,  it  is  always  accompanied, 
or  immediately  succeeded,  by  those  which  form  a  chord,  and 
are  termed  in  music  the  harmonics.  This  phenomenon  in 
acoustics,  we  believe,  is  most  perceptible  in  the  sound  of  a  bell 
in  succession,  and  in  accompaniment  on  the  string  of  the 
violoncello. 


28 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


We  shall  now  turn  our  attention  to  the  consideration  of  the 
chemical  changes  which  are  supposed  to  take  place  in  nature, 
giving  rise  to  the  various  colors  presented  to  us  in  the  vegeta- 
ble kingdom,  which  will  greatly  aid  us  in  describing  the  arti 
ficial  means  of  imitating  nature  in  these  colors,  although  as 
yet  there  is  comparatively  little  known  concerning  the  nature 
of  these  changes.  For  a  long  time,  chemists  considered  iron 
to  be  the  coloring  principle  of  all  animals  and  vegetables, 
being  almost  universally  diffused,  and  capable  of  assuming  a 
variety  of  colors,  either  as  oxides  or  solutions ;  but  it  was 
afterwards  demonstrated  that  the  iron  present  in  any  vegeta- 
ble, even  in  those  where  it  existed  most  abundantly,  was  alto- 
gether inadequate  to  produce  the  splendid  colors  which  vege- 
tables assume.  Several  other  hypotheses  were  proposed  to 
account  for  the  colors  of  vegetables ;  but  these  hypotheses, 
not  being  founded  upon  inquiry  and  proof,  died  at  their  birth. 
It  is  only  within  these  few  years  that  the  true  method  of  as- 
certaining the  nature  and  cause  of  vegetable  colors  has  been 
adopted  ;  that  is,  by  the  ultimate  analysis  of  vegetable  sub- 
stances in  all  the  stages  of  existence  ;  and  since  then,  a  num- 
ber of  important  facts  have  been  made  known  respecting  this 
interesting  subject,  and  new  ones  are  daily  being  added  ;  and 
we  hope  that  these  discoveries  may  be  speedily  made  available 
by  the  practical  man. 

The  principal  elements  of  vegetable  substances  are,  oxygen, 
hydrogen,  carbon,  and  nitrogen  :  the  last  exists  in  such  a 
minute  quantity,  that  in  many  cases  it  is  scarcely  apprecia- 
ble ;  but  according  to  the  opinion  of  Liebig,  who  stands  at 
the  head  of  this  department  of  chemistry,  it  is  never  absent. 
There  is  also  a  variety  of  earthy  substances  in  vegetables, 
such  as  lime,  iron,  magnesia,  soda,  potash,  &c. ;  but,  all  these 
never  exist  in  one  vegetable — some  of  them  seem  indispensa- 
ble for  the  existence  of  a  plant ;  but  they  differ  according  to 
the  nature  of  the  plant,  and  the  soil  on  which  it  grows.  The 
three  elements,  oxygen,  hydrogen,  and  carbon,  enter  very 
abundantly  into  the  composition  of  vegetables,  forming  from 
95  to  99  per  cent. ;  but  it  must  not  be  supposed  from  this,  that 
all  vegetables  are  alike  in  their  chemical  properties — they  may 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


29 


be  as  varied  as  those  substances  which  constitute  the  mineral 
kingdom.  This  depends  upon  a  well-known  law  in  chemis- 
try, termed  the  law  of  definite  proportions ;  that  is,  every 
compound  substance  has  a  particular  number  of  elements, 
and  a  definite  number  of  each  element.  The  following  table, 
showing  the  composition  of  a  few  compounds  which  consti- 
tute a  great  mass  of  all  vegetables,  will  serve  to  illusCrate 
this. 

Carbon.     Oxygen.  Hydrogen. 


Woody  fibre, 

15 

10 

10 

Gum, 

12 

11 

11 

Starch, 

12 

10 

10 

Sugar, 

12 

11 

11 

It  will  be  observed  from  the  above  table  how  little  is  neces- 
sary to  produce  an  entire  different  compound.  It  will  also  be 
observed,  that  gum  and  sugar  are  the  same  :  this  appears  an 
exception  to  the  law  above  described.  Those  bodies  which 
have  their  elements  in  the  same  proportion,  are  termed  iso- 
meric  (see  Tartaric  Acid),  signifying  equal  parts.  The  dis- 
covery of  bodies  having  the  same  number  of  elements,  and 
differing  in  their  chemical  properties,  excited  much  interest 
among  chemists,  and  has  led  to  much  careful  study  and 
investigation,  and  the  result  has  been  rather  unfavorable  to 
the  doctrine  of  isomerism  :  they  are  substances  which  the 
French  would  designate  the  same  with  a  difference — the  dif- 
ference is  supposed  to  be  in  the  numerical  arrangement  of  the 
elements.  As  for  example,  hydrogen  and  carbon  will  com- 
bine in  the  proportion  of  two  and  two,  four  and  four,  and 
eight  and  eight,  forming  three  substances,  differing  consider- 
ably in  chemical  properties,  although  the  elements  are  com- 
bined in  the  same  proportion  ;  but,  interesting  as  this  subject 
is,  we  cannot  in  the  mean  time  enter  into  any  lengthened  de- 
tails— it  shows  us,  however,  the  extensive  means  employed  by 
nature  for  giving  variety  of  substances.  Another  thing  to  be 
observed  from  the  above  table  is,  that  the  oxygen  and  hydro- 
gen in  each  of  these  compounds  are  in  the  same  proportion, 
or  in  that  relative  proportion  in  which  they  unite  to  form 
water.    Now,  it  may  be  stated  as  a  general  rule,  that  when 


30 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


oxygen  and  hydrogen  are  united  to  carbon,  in  the  proportion 
in  which  they  form  water,  the  resulting  compounds  are  of  a 
saccharine  or  mucilaginous  character. 

When  vegetable  compounds  have  hydrogen  united  to  car- 
bon without  oxygen,  or  when  there  is  less  of  that  element 
than  would  be  required  to  convert  the  hydrogen  into  water? 
the  resulting  compounds  are  generally  oily,  resinous,  or  alco- 
holic. A  table  of  the  composition  of  a  few  of  these  sub- 
stances will  illustrate  this 

Carbon.    Hydrogen.  Oxygen. 


Oil  of  turpentine,  10  8 

Oil  of  potatoes,  5  6  1 

Oil  of  cloves,        ...  23  14  5 

Resin  of  gamboge,  20  14  5 

Caoutchouc,         ...  4  4 

Bees' wax,           ...  37  39  2 

Pyroxilic  spirit,  2  4  2 

Alcohol,       ....  2  3  1 


When  the  proportion  of  oxygen  united  to  carbon  is  in 
greater  quantity  than  the  hydrogen,  or  when  none  of  this  ele- 
ment is  present,  the  resulting  compounds  have  generally  an 
acid  character  :  green  fruits  are  in  this  state,  which  gives 
them  the  sour  taste,  and  makes  them  deleterious  to  health, 
either  by  giving  too  much  acid  to  the  stomach,  or  the  acid 
being  of  a  direct  poisonous  nature  ;  but  as  the  fruit  ripens,  it 
takes  in  or  assimilates  more  hydrogen,  and  the  acid,  or  at 
least  part  of  the  acid,  is  converted  into  a  saccharine  com- 
pound. The  following  table  will  show  the  composition  of  a 
few  of  the  most  common  acids  found  in  vegetables  : — 


Carbon.      Oxygen.  Hydrogen. 


Acetic  acid  (vinegar), 

4 

3 

3 

Tartaric  acid, 

.  4 

5 

2 

Citric  acid  (lemon  juice), 

4 

4 

2 

Gallic  acid, 

.  7 

5 

3 

Tannic  acid,  . 

.  18 

12 

8 

There  are  also  a  number  of  vegetable  alkalies  which  are 
found  united  to  acids  in  plants,  which,  however,  need  not  be 
specially  noticed  here,  further  than  that  they  almost  all  con- 
tain nitrogen  as  an  ingredient.   There  are  other  substances  in 


FIRST   PRINCIPLES   OF  DYEING. 


31 


which  nitrogen  enters  into  their  composition,  and  which  arc 
useful  in  the  production  of  colors  by  art,  but  which  will  be 
noticed  under  their  respective  heads. 

Having-  given  an  outline  of  the  nature  and  composition  of 
the  principal  vegetable  compounds,  we  shall  now  inquire  into 
the  cause  of  their  assuming  certain  colors,  and  the  effects 
which  acids  have  upon  these  colors. 

At  the  commencement  of  this  chapter,  we  mentioned  that 
color  is  the  result  of  the  mutual  operation  of  the  active  and 
passive  principles  of  light ;  but  it  may  also  be  stated,  that  this 
result  depends  upon  the  chemical  constitution  of  the  particular 
substance ;  hence,  the  inquiry  into  the  cause  of  vegetable  col- 
ors becomes  a  chemical  one ;  and,  from  chemical  laws  these 
colors  must  have  a  definite  constitution  ;  and  when  any  change 
of  color  takes  place,  there  must  also  be  a  change  of  chemical 
constitution.  In  prosecuting  this  inquiry,  or  rather,  in  collec- 
ting the  inquiries  of  the  most  eminent  chemists  upon  this 
subject,  we  shall  begin  with  the  paramount  color  of  the  vege- 
table kingdom,  namely,  green. 

Green  is  well  known  to  be  a  compound  color,  produced  by 
yellow  and  blue,  and  is  always  induced  upon  cloth  by  dyeing 
it  first  the  one  and  then  the  other.  It  is  not  always  the  yel- 
low that  is  dyed  first,  according  to  the  description  in  chemical 
books  ;  but  sometimes  the  blue,  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
dyeing  agent,  which  will  be  explained  in  its  proper  place. 
Speaking  of  vegetable  green,  Berthollet  says,  "  the  green  of 
plants  is  undoubtedly  produced  by  a  homogeneous  substance, 
in  the  same  way  as  the  greater  number  of  hues  which  exist 
in  nature.  This  color  owes,  then,  its  origin  sometimes  to  sim- 
ple rays,  and  sometimes  to  the  union  of  different  rays ;  and 
some  other  colors  are  in  the  same  predicament.  Were  the 
green  of  plants  due  to  two  substances,  one  of  which  is  yellow 
and  the  other  blue,  it  would  be  extraordinary  if  we  could  not 
separate  them,  or  at  least  change  their  proportions  by  some 
solvent."  This  idea  of  Berthollet,  that  the  green  of  plants  is 
a  distinct  substance,  existing  in  the  plant,  has  been  since  veri- 
fied. It  is  obtained  by  bruising  green  leaves  into  a  pulp  with 
water,  pressing  out  all  the  liquid,  and  boiling  the  dry  pulp  in 


32  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

alcohol :  when  the  alcohol  is  evaporated,  there  remains  a  deep 
green  matter,  which,  by  digesting  in  water,  dissolves,  and  frees 
it  from  a  little  brown  coloring  matter,  with  which  it  was  mixed. 
This  substance  has  been  named  chlorophyllite.  The  forma- 
tion of  chlorophyllite  seems  to  depend  entirely  upon  the  action 
of  the  solar  rays.  "  It  is  known  that  the  function  of  the  leaves 
and  other  green  parts  of  plants  is  to  absorb  carbonic  acid,  and. 
with  the  aid  of  light  and  moisture,  to  appropriate  its  carbon. 
These  processes  are  continually  in  operation  :  they  commence 
with  the  formation  of  the  leaves,  and  do  not  cease  with  their 
perfect  development."  But  when  light  is  absent,  or,  during 
the  night,  the  decomposition  of  carbonic  acid  does  not  pro- 
ceed ;  nay,  carbonic  acid  is  emitted,  and  oxygen  gas  absorbed  : 
it  is  evident  then  that  a  plant  kept  always  excluded  from 
the  light,  must  have  a  difference  in  its  composition.  "No 
one  can  have  failed  to  observe  the  difference  between  vege- 
tables thriving  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  light,  and  those  which 
grow  in  obscure  situations,  or  which  are  entirely  deprived  of 
its  agency :  the  former  are  of  brilliant  tints  ;  the  latter  dingy 
and  white.*  Numerous  familiar  instances  might  be  cited,  es- 
pecially among  our  esculent  vegetables  :  the  shoots  of  a  potato 
produced  in  a  dark  cellar  are  white,  straggling,  and  differently 
formed  from  those  which  the  plant  exhibits  under  its  usual 
circumstances  of  growth.  Celery  is  cultivated  for  the  table  by 
carefully  excluding  the  influence  of  the  light  upon  its  stem : 
this  is  effected  by  heaping  the  soil  upon  it,  so  as  entirely  to 
screen  it  from  the  solar  rays ;  but  if  suffered  to  grow  in  the 


*  According  to  Goethe,  the  eye  owes  its  existence  to  light,  which  calls  forth,  as 
it  were,  a  sense  that  is  akin  to  itself;  or,  in  other  words,  that  a  dormant  light  re- 
sides in  the  eye,  which  may  be  excited  from  within  or  without.  Goethe  observes, 
"In  darkness,  we  can,  by  an  effort  of  our  imagination,  call  up  the  brightest  ima- 
ges; in  dreams,  objects  appear  to  us  as  in  broad  daylight;  awake,  the  slightest  ex- 
ternal action  of  light  is  perceptible,  and  if  the  organ  suffers  an  actual  shock,  light 
and  colors  spring  forth." 

He  likewise  clearly  shows  that  color  is  a  law  of  nature  in  relation  with  the  sense 
of  sight,  as  well  as  an  elementary  phenomenon,  which,  "like  all  others,  exhibits 
itself  by  separation  and  contrast,  by  commixture  and  union,  by  augmentation  and 
neutralization,  and  by  communication  and  dissolution."  Under  these  general  terms, 
the  nature  of  color  is  fully  comprehended. 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


33 


ordinary  way,  it  soon  alters  its  aspect,  throws  out  abundant 
shoots  and  leaves,  and,  instead  of  remaining  white  and  of  lit- 
tle taste,  acquires  a  deep  green  color,  and  a  peculiarly  bitter 
and  nauseous  flavor.  The  heart  of  the  common  cabbage  is 
another  illustration,  and  the  rosy-colored  aspect  of  the  sides  of 
fruit  is  referable  to  the  same  cause.  Changes  yet  more  re- 
markable have  been  discovered  in  plants  vegetating  entirely 
out  of  the  access  of  light.  In  visiting  a  coal-pit,  Professor 
Robinson  found  a  plant  with  a  large  white  foliage,  the  form 
and  appearance  of  which  were  quite  new  to  him ;  it  was  left 
at  the  mouth  of  the  pit,  when  the  subterranean  leaves  died 
away,  and  common  tansy  sprung  from  the  roots."* 

From  these  facts  we  see  that  the  green  color  of  vegetables 
is  owing  to  a  peculiar  approximate  element  existing  in  the 
vegetable,  not  invariably,  nor  altogether  essential  to  the  plant, 
but  depending  upon  circumstances  ;  these  circumstances  be- 
ing at  the  same  time  the  best  for  the  health  and  existence  of 
the  plant.  This  color  differs  from  the  other  colors  of  vegeta- 
bles in  the  time  of  its  appearing.  Flowers  of  plants  do  not 
appear  till  the  plant  has  reached  a  certain  state  of  maturity  ; 
but  whenever  a  plant  rises  above  the  soil,  it  immediately  be- 
gins to  assume  the  green  hue,  and  this  hue  is  continued  till 
the  object  of  the  leaves  is  completed.  When  a  chemical 
change  takes  place,  the  green  passes  away,  and  another  color, 
reddish-yellow,  takes  its  place.  These  changes  are  effected 
in  different  degrees,  and  in  different  lengths  of  time,  just  ac- 
cording as  the  leaves  have  the  property  of  absorbing  oxygen 
gas.  Those  leaves  which  continue  longest  green  absorb 
oxygen  slowest.  The  leaves  of  the  holly  will  only  absorb  a 
small  fraction  of  oxygen,  in  the  same  time  that  the  leaves  of 
the  poplar  and  beech  will  absorb  eight  or  nine  times  their 
bulk.  These  last  are  remarkable  for  the  rapidity  and  ease 
with  which  the  color  of  their  leaves  changes.  That  leaves 
do  absorb  oxygen  gas  when  they  change  color  at  autumn, 
and  that  it  is  owing  to  the  absorption  of  this  gas,  may  be 


*  See  Appendix,  articles  Color,  its  influence  on  Odors,  and  Experiments  and  Ob- 
servations on  Light. 

5 


34  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

verified  oy  placing  some  green  leaves  of  the  poplar,  the  beech, 
and  the  holly,  under  the  receiver  of  an  air-pump,  and  drying 
them  thoroughly,  keeping  them  excluded  from  light ;  when 
taken  out,  wet  them  with  water,  and  place  them  immediately 
under  a  glass  globe,  full  of  oxygen  gas,  they  will  change 
color  ;  and  it  will  be  found  that  each  will  change  color  just 
in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  oxygen  it  absorbs.  The  con- 
sequence of  this  absorption  is  the  formation  of  an  acid.  This 
acid  changes  the  chlorophyllite,  or  green  principle,  from  green 
to  yellow,  and  then  to  a  reddish  hue.  If  we  treat  green 
leaves  with  an  acid,  the  same  changes  of  color  take  place, 
and  if  we  macerate  a  red  leaf  in  potash  it  becomes  green. 

The  various  and  beautiful  colors  of  flowers  are  produced 
by  a  somewhat  different  process  from  that  of  the  green  of  the 
leaves,  in  so  far  as  they  do  not  appear  until  the  plant  has  at- 
tained a  certain  state  of  maturity.  "  The  leaves  of  the  plant 
being  fully  developed,  they  take  in  more  nourishment  from 
the  atmosphere  than  what  is  necessary  for  the  existence  of 
the  plant.  This  extra  nourishment  takes  a  new  direction  ;  a 
peculiar  transformation  takes  place ;  new  compounds  are 
formed,  which  furnish  constituents  of  the  blossoms,  fruit,  and 
seed."* 

It  is  very  probable  that  all  the  colors  of  flowers  depend 
upon  only  a  few  approximate  elements  formed  in  the  vegeta- 
ble, in  the  manner  already  described,  and  that  their  various 
hues  are  the  consequence  of  the  presence  of  acids  affecting 
more  or  less  this  coloring  substance.  This  is  the  most  prob- 
able hypothesis  that  has  been  formed,  and  with  which  we 
must  rest  satisfied  till  more  accurate  experiments  verify  its 
truth,  or  give  us  a  better.  The  following  summary  of  exper- 
iments will  give  some  idea  of  the  views  held  upon  this  sub- 
ject : — "  The  expressed  juice  of  most  red  flowers  is  blue  ; 
hence  it  is  probable  that  the  coloring  matter  in  the  flower  is 
reddened  by  an  acid,  which  makes  it  escape  when  the  juice 
is  exposed  to  the  air.  The  violet  is  well  known  to  be  colored 
by  a  blue  matter,  which  acids  change  to  red ;  and  alkalies 


*  Liebig's  Agricultural  Chemistry. 


FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  DYEING. 


35 


and  their  carbonates,  first  to  green,  and  then  to  yellow.  The 
coloring  matter  of  the  violet  exists  in  the  petals  of  red  clover, 
the  red  tips  of  the  common  daisy  of  the  field,  of  the  blue 
hyacinth,  the  hollyhock,  lavender,  in  the  inner  leaves  of  the 
artichoke,  and  numerous  other  flowers.  The  same  substance 
made  red  by  an  acid,  colors  the  skin  of  several  kinds  of 
plums  ;  probably,  also,  gives  the  red  color  to  the  petals  of  the 
scarlet  geranium,  and  of  the  pomegranate  tree.  The  leaves 
of  the  red  cabbage,  and  the  rind  of  the  long  radish,  are  also 
colored  by  this  principle.  It  is  remarkable  that  these,  on  be- 
ing merely  bruised,  become  blue,  and  give  a  blue  infusion 
with  water.  It  is  probable  that  the  reddening  acid  in  these 
cases  is  the  carbonic,  which,  on  the  rupture  of  the  vessel 
which  encloses  it,  (being  a  gas,)  escapes  into  the  atmosphere. 
If  the  petals  of  the  red  rose  be  triturated  with  a  little  water 
and  chalk,  a  blue  liquid  is  obtained.  Alkalies  render  this 
blue  liquid  green,  and  acids  restore  its  red  color."* 

Many  attempts  have  been  made  to  transfer  the  coloring 
matter  of  flowers  to  cloth,  but  without  success.  In  general, 
they  are  so  fugitive,  as  to  change  the  moment  they  are  brought 
into  contact  with  the  atmosphere,  and  those  of  them  which 
can  be  extracted,  have  no  affinity  for  the  cloth.  If  a  third 
substance  be  used  to  give  this  affinity,  it  destroys  the  original 
color  of  the  vegetable.  This  is  the  case  with  nearly  all  veg- 
etable coloring  matter  ;  for,  if  we  except  indigo,  there  is 
scarcely  another  substance  which  is  capable  of  imparting  its 
own  color  to  cloth.  Again,  the  coloring  matter  of  flowers  is 
very  limited  in  its  changing  hues  by  artificial  means.  Acids 
change  it  to  red,  and  alkalies  to  green,  but  these  substances, 
though  they  thus  act  upon  the  coloring  matter  of  vegetables, 
cannot  serve  as  bonds  of  union  between  the  color  and  the 
cloth  with  which  they  do  not  themselves  possess  the  property 
of  combining.  The  substances  which  act  the  part  of  inter- 
media to  the  vegetable  coloring  matters  used  in  dyeing,  do 
not  affect  or  combine  with  the  coloring  substances.  This 
property  of  combining  with  mordants,  no  doubt  depends  upon 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Experiments  and  Observations  on  Light. 


36 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  chemical  composition  of  the  color,  and  the  effects  pro- 
duced by  these  colors  being  in  union  with  other  substances 
which  combine  with  the  mordant  upon  the  cloth.  These 
substances  are  tannin  and  gallic  acid,  and  so  far  as  our  ob- 
servations extend,  it  is  to  the  presence  of  one  of  these  that 
most  dyewoods  owe  their  dyeing  properties.  At  all  events,  the 
great  variety  of  hues  which  they  are  capable  of  imparting  to 
goods  when  combined  with  the  oxides  of  the  metals,  are  de- 
pendent upon  these  principles. 

We  are  now  about  entering  a  field  which  is  yet  spacious, 
offering  an  ample  harvest  for  the  practical  man  who  may 
combine  a  little  science  with  his  practice. 


CHAPTER  III. 


ANIMAL  AND  VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES, 
WITH  THEIR  ORIGIN,  USES,  AND  PRINCIPAL 
CHEMICAL  CHARACTERS,  &c. 

Practical  observations  on  Lichens — Anotta — Archil — Barwood — Bark  (Quercitron) 
— Berries  of  Avignon — Brazil-wood — Camwood — Carmine,  and  the  various 
processes  of  Manufacturing  it — Carthamus  (Safflower)— Catechue — Cochineal, 
and  its  Coloring  principle — Cudbear — Fustic — Garancine — Hematine — Indigo, 
and  its  Manufacture — Mistaken  notions  of  Dr.  Ure  on  this  subject — Kermes — 
Lac,  Lac  Dye—  Lakes — Red  Lakes — Carminated  Lakes — Madder  Lakes — Brazil- 
wood Lakes — Yellow  Lakes — Litmus — Logwood — Madder — Madder  Purple — 
Madder  Red — Madder  Orange — Madder  Yellow — Madder  Brown — Brands  of 
Casks,  and  Adulteration  of  Madder  by  Mineral  and  Vegetable  substances — On 
the  determination  of  the  Coloring  power  by  the  Colorimeter,  Dyeing,  &c. — Ni- 
caragua-wood —  Peachwood  —  Quercitron  —  Redwood — Safflower — Sandal,  or 
Red  Saunders-wood — Sapan-wood  —  Sumach — Turmeric  — Turnsole — Weld — 
Woad — Extracting  Coloring  Matter  from  Dyewoods. 

Jk-  cr/er  to  form  an  exact  idea  of  the  effects  produced  by 
th'j  substances  employed  in  dyeing,  their  chemical  properties 
must  be  known.  We  shall,  therefore,  in  this  and  the  two 
following  chapters,  present  a  summary  view  of  the  properties 
of  the  substances  most  commonly  used  in  dyeing  and  calico- 
printing  ;  stating,  at  the  same  time,  the  general  principles 
which  may  serve  to  explain  their  action ;  and  we  shall  so 
order  it,  that  those  persons  who  have  but  a  limited  acquaint- 
ance with  chemistry,  may  find  in  this  summary  the  most  use- 
ful notions,  and  that  those  who  are  further  advanced  in  the 
speculations  of  the  science  may  perceive  the  relations  con- 
necting the  particular  phenomena  to  the  general  laws  of  com- 
bination. 

According  to  the  arrangement  we  have  adopted  we  shall 
first  treat  of  animal  and  vegetable  coloring  substances : 
secondly,  of  mineral  coloring  substances ;  and  lastly,  of  acids. 


p 


38  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

Our  knowledge  concerning  that  department  of  organic 
chemistry  which  embraces  the  coloring  matters,  and  other 
principles  nearly  allied  to  them,  is  of  the  most  imperfect  kind. 
Though  many  other  branches  of  organic  chemistry  have  been 
so  thoroughly  and  accurately  investigated,  that  little  or  no- 
thing remains  to  be  known  concerning  them,  this  may  be  called 
an  unexplored  field.  Most  of  the  coloring  matters  are  so  little 
known,  as  regards  even  their  most  essential  characters,  as  not 
to  allow  us  either  to  justify,  or  to  question,  the  propriety  of 
throwing  them  together  into  one  general  class  ;  a  class  distin- 
guished from  those  nearly  allied  to  it  merely  by  the  (as  far  as 
we  know)  adventitious  circumstance  of  the  substances  belong- 
ing to  it,  being  endowed  with  certain  more  or  less  vivid  colors. 
Among  all  the  coloring  matters,  there  are  none,  the  study  of 
whose  properties  and  reactions  is  calculated  to  throw  more 
light  on  the  nature  of  the  whole  class,  than  those  which  are 
prepared,  by  an  artificial  process,  from  certain  kinds  of 
lichens,  and  on  this  account  it  is  desirable  that  they  should 
be  carefully  examined.  It  was  the  circumstance  of  these 
substances  being  prepared  artificially  from  plants  perfectly 
devoid  of  color,  that  first  attracted  to  them  the  attention  of 
chemists,  and  led  to  a  series  of  investigations  by  which  a 
number  of  highly  interesting  substances  were  brought  to 
light,  and  a  process  elucidated  which  belongs  to  the  most  re- 
markable and  unparalleled  in  the  whole  range  of  organic 
chemistry. 

Robiquet  first  discovered  a  colorless  crystalizable  substance 
in  them  (orcin,)  capable  of  being  converted  by  the  joint  action 
of  ammonia  and  oxygen  into  a  true  coloring  matter,  which 
contains  neither  the  original  substance,  nor  ammonia  as  such. 
This  interesting  discovery  was  followed  by  others.  The 
researches  of  Heeren  made  us  acquainted  with  a  series  of 
substances  contained  in  the  Roccella  tinctoria,  possessed  of 
the  same  property,  and  another  substance,  phloridzin,  was 
shown,  by  Stas,  to  bear  a  complete  analogy  to  orcin,  in  this 
respect.  The  subsequent  labors  of  Dumas,  who  subjected 
orcin,  and  the  bodies  derived  from  it,  to  an  accurate  examina- 
tion, and  of  Kane,  who  has  determined  the  composition  of 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  39 

the  substances  discovered  by  Heeren,  and  of  the  coloring 
matters  contained  in  archil  and  litmus,  seemed  to  have  suffi- 
ciently elucidated  the  subject.  Some  obscurities,  however,  in 
a  part  of  Dr.  Kane's  late  paper,  seemed  to  make  it  desirable 
that  some  of  his  results  should  be  confirmed  before  being 
finally  adopted  ;  and,  at  the  suggestion  of  Professor  Liebig, 
Edward  Schunck,  Esq.,  of  Manchester,  undertook  the  inves- 
tigation of  this  subject,  and  performed  it  in  the  Professor's 
laboratory. 

Instead  of  the  Roccella  tinctoria,  he  employed  in  his  ex- 
periments, the  lichens  that  grow  on  the  basalt  rocks  of  the 
Vogelsberg,  in  Upper  Hessia,  where  they  are  collected  for  the 
purpose  of  preparing  a  dye  from  them.  These  lichens  were 
all  crustaceous,  and  belonged  to  the  genera  Lecanora,  Urceo- 
laria,  Variolario,  &c,  From  them  Mr.  Schunck  extracted 
the  following  substances  : — 

1.  A  white,  crystaline  substance,  soluble  in  alcohol  and 
ether,  but  insoluble  in  water,  bearing  in  its  properties  great 
resemblance  to  the  substance  called  by  Heeren  Erythrin, 
and  by  Kane  Erythrilin,  but  different  in  composition,  and 
giving  other  products  of  decomposition.  This  substance  he 
calls  Lecanorin. 

2.  A  crystalizable  substance  identical  in  properties  and 
composition  with  Heeren's  Pseuderythrin,  and  Kane's  Ery- 
thrilin. 

3.  A  fatty  substance  of  acid  properties,  soluble  in  alcohol, 
but  insoluble  in  ether  and  water.* 

The  method  by  which  these  substances  were  extracted, 
and  separated  from  one  another,  was  the  following  : — 

The  lichens  were  reduced  to  a  coarse  powder,  and  then 
treated  with  ether,  in  an  apparatus  of  displacement,  until  the 


*  This  fatty  substance  has  been  examined  but  slightly.  It  is  soluble  in  alcohol, 
but  insoluble  in  ether  and  water.  From  an  alcoholic  solution  it  is  deposited  in 
small  pearly-white  scales ;  if  the  solution  be  spontaneously  evaporated,  it  is  ob- 
tained in  small,  hard,  shining,  transparent  crystals.  It  is  soluble  in  alkalies,  form- 
ing soapy  solutions,  and  is  reprecipitated  by  acids.  Its  alkaline  solutions  do  not 
become  colored  when  exposed  to  the  air.  It  cannot  be  melted  without  being  de- 
composed. 


40  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

ether  dissolved  nothing  more.  The  ethereal  extract,  which 
had  acquired  a  green  tinge  from  chlorophyl  in  solution,  was 
distilled  off,  leaving  as  a  residue  a  greenish  yellow  mass,  con- 
sisting, for  the  greater  part,  of  lecanorin.  This  mass  was 
brought  into  a  glass  funnel,  and  washed  with  small  quantities 
of  ether,  until  it  had  lost  its  green  color  in  part.  It  was 
then  treated  with  boiling  water,  in  order  to  remove  every 
trace  of  pseuderythrin,  and,  lastly,  purified  by  dissolving  it  in 
a  small  quantity  of  boiling  alcohol,  which  deposited,  on  cool- 
ing, a  snow-white  crystaline  mass,  consisting  of  lacanorin  in 
a  state  of  purity.  The  dark  green  ethereal  fluid  obtained  by 
washing  the  impure  lecanorin,  contained,  besides  lecanorin, 
the  greatest  part  of  the  pseuderythrin  which  had  been  ex- 
tracted by  the  ether.  The  fluid  was  evaporated  to  dryness, 
and  the  residual  mass  treated  with  boiling  water,  which  de- 
posited, on  cooling,  a  mass  of  shining  plates  and  needles  of 
pseuderythrin,  which  was  purified  by  recrystalization.  More 
of  this  substance  was  obtained  by  treating  the  lichens,  which 
had  been  exhausted  with  ether,  with  boiling  alcohol,  and 
filtering  rapidly.  The  alcohol  was  distilled  off,  and  the  resi- 
due treated  with  boiling  water,  which  dissolved  all  the  pseu- 
derythrin, and  deposited  it  on  cooling.  The  mass  left  undis- 
solved was  washed  with  ether,  which  dissolved  all  the  chloro- 
phyl, and  left  behind  the  fatty  substance  mentioned  above, 
which  was  purified  by  redissolving  in  alcohol. 

A  more  minute  description  of  the  properties  of  these  several 
bodies  will  now  be  given. 

Lecanorin. — This  substance,  when  pure,  is  perfectly  white. 
If  prepared  in  the  manner  described  above,  it  has  the  appear- 
ance of  a  white  mass,  composed  of  acicular  needles.  When 
its  solutions  are  slowly  evaporated,  it  crystalizes  in  silky 
needles  grouped  together  in  star-shaped  masses.  It  is  insolu- 
ble in  boiling  water,  but  soluble  easily  in  alcohol  and  ether. 
Its  solutions  redden  litmus  paper.  It  is  soluble  in  alkaline 
liquors,  from  which  it  is  precipitated  unchanged  by  acids,  pro- 
vided the  solutions  be  not  boiled,  and  be  not  left  to  stand  too 
long.  It  is  insoluble  in  all  weak  acids,  with  the  exception  of 
acetic  acid.    Strong  nitric  acid  converts  it  ultimately  into 


VEGETAELE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  41 

oxalic  acid.  It  combines  with  metallic  oxides  by  double  de- 
composition. Heated  on  platinum  foil  it  melts,  emits  a  dense 
vapor,  and  burns  off,  leaving  but  little  carbonaceous  residue. 
When  heated  in  a  tube  closed  at  one  end,  it  melts,  and,  under 
violent  ebullition,  gives  off  a  dense  vapor,  which  condenses 
in  the  upper  part  of  the  tube  into  a  thick  liquid,  which  after 
some  time  solidifies,  forming  a  crystaline  mass.  The  nature 
of  this  sublimate  will  be  explained  further  on. 

The  action  of  the  alkalies  on  this  substance,  is,  of  course, 
the  most  interesting  point  connected  with  its  history.  A  solu- 
tion of  lecanorin  in  ammonia,  when  exposed  to  the  air,  ac- 
quires, after  some  time,  a  beautiful  deep  purple  color :  from 
this  solution  acids  precipitate  a  red  coloring  matter.  A  solu- 
tion in  potash,  under  the  same  circumstances,  becomes  of  a 
deep  red  color.  Being  desirous  of  ascertaining  whether  the 
lecanorin  was  immediately  converted  into  the  red  coloring 
matter,  or  whether  it  passed  first  into  any  intermediate  state, 
which  was  not  improbable,  Mr.  Schunck  dissolved  some  of 
the  substance  in  ammonia,  excluding  the  solution  from  con- 
tact with  the  air.  After  a  lapse  of  some  hours,  the  solution, 
though  perfectly  colorless,  was  found  no  longer  to  contain 
any  lecanorin ;  for  acids  instead  of  producing  a  thick  gelatin- 
ous, or  floculent,  precipitate,  as  they  do  when  applied  imme- 
diately after  the  solution  has  been  effected,  merely  caused  a 
brisk  effervescence  of  carbonic  acid,  plainly  showing  that  the 
substance  had  been  completely  decomposed  without  a  color- 
ing matter  having  been  formed.  The  same  effect  was  brought 
about  instantaneously  when  the  solution  was  boiled.  In 
order  to  observe  the  process  more  clearly,  he  dissolved  a  quan- 
tity of  lecanorin  in  baryta  water  in  the  cold.  The  solution 
on  being  boiled,  or  allowed  to  stand,  deposited  a  great  mass 
of  pure  carbonate  of  baryta  precipitated  by  a  stream  of  car- 
bonic acid :  on  slow  evaporation,  it  yielded  large  prismatic 
crystals  of  a  substance  which  possessed  characters  in  every 
respect  identical  with  those  of  orcin.  It  had  an  extremely 
sweet  taste,  was  capable  of  being  volatilized  without  change, 
and  without  leaving  any  residue ;  gave  a  deep  blue  color  when 
dissolved  in  ammonia,  and  exposed  to  the  air,  struck  a  blood- 

6 


42 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


red  color  with  nitric  acid,  and  precipitated  a  solution  of  basic 
acetate  of  lead.  Lecanorin  thus  is  converted,  by  the  action 
of  alkalies,  into  orcin  and  carbonic  acid,  in  the  first  instance, 
this  decomposition  always  preceding  the  formation  of  coloring 
matters.  The  same  decomposition  is  produced  by  the  carbo- 
nated alkalies,  by  long  boiling  with  water,  and  by  dry  distil- 
lation, the  heavy  vapor,  mentioned  above  as  being  produced 
by  heating  lecanorin  to  decomposition,  being  vapor  of  orcin. 

The  composition  of  lecanorin  is  expressed  by  the  formula 
C18  H8  08.  The  results  of  the  combustions  which  Mr.  Schunck 
made  of  it,  admit  of  no  interpretation.  All  attempts  to  de- 
termine its  atomic  weight  by  means  of  combining  it  with 
metallic  oxides,  failed.  These  compounds  can  only  be  pre- 
pared by  double  decomposition ;  but  the  facility  with  which 
lecanorin  is  decomposed,  when  alkalies  are  added  to  its  solu- 
tions, always  renders  the  purity  of  the  compounds  formed 
liable  to  doubt.  The  compound  with  oxide  of  silver,  formed 
by  adding  nitrate  of  silver  to  an  alcoholic  solution  of  leca- 
norin, and  then  precipitating  by  means  of  a  few  drops  of  am- 
monia, though  it  changed  color  but  slightly  in  drying,  gave 
no  consistent  results.  The  compound  with  oxide  of  lead, 
formed  by  precipitating  a  solution  of  lecanorin  with  basic  ace- 
tate of  lead,  was  so  basic,  and  its  formula  so  unusual,  that 
Mr.  Schunck  was  led  to  suppose  that  one  or  two  atoms  of  basic 
acetate  of  lead  were  precipitated  together  with  it.  By  decom- 
posing, however,  a  weighted  quantity  of  lecanorin  with  caus- 
tic baryta,  and  determining  the  quantity  of  carbonate  of  bary- 
ta formed,  very  accurate  results  were  obtained,  confirming 
the  formula  C9  H4  04,  or  C18  H8  08,  for  lecanorin.  In  regard 
to  the  composition  of  orcin,  the  same  gentleman  was  induced 
to  replace  the  generally  received  formula,  for  its  composition, 
by  a  new  one.  Dumas'  formula  for  anhydrous  orcin  is  C18 
H7  03,  and  for  crystalized  orcin  C18  H12  08,  which  evidently 
cannot  be  brought  into  accordance  with  the  formula  for  lecan- 
orin as  given  above.  If,  however,  the  formula  C16  H6  02,  be 
taken  for  anhydrous  orcin,  and  C16  Hn  07  for  crystalized 
orcin,  then  the  decomposition  which  lecanorin  undergoes  with 
alkalies,  may  be  expressed  as  follows : — 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


43 


1  atom  of  anhydrous  orcin,  C,6  H6  02 

2  atoms  of  water,  H2  02 
2  atoms  of  carbonic  acid,  C2  04 
1  atom  of  lecanorin,                       0, 8  H8  08 

Two  atoms  of  water  are  furnished  by  the  decomposition  of 
the  lecanorin  itself,  and  three  more  by  the  fluid,  to  form  from 
C16  H6  02  one  atom  of  crystalized  orcin,  016Hn07.  The 
combustions  made  of  this  substance  by  Mr.  Schunck,  agree 
perfectly  with  these  formulas,  but  Dumas'  analysis  of  the  lead 
compound  of  orcin,  do  not  coincide  with  them,  unless  it  be 
supposed  that  this  compound  contains  acetate  of  lead,  either 
in  chemical  combination,  or  mechanically  mixed. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  is  evident  that  our  knowledge 
of  this  series  of  bodies  is  far  from  being  complete.  It  has 
been  shown  above,  that  the  action  of  alkalies  on  lecanorin  is 
two-fold ;  it  consists,  first,  in  abstracting  from  the  substance 
carbonic  acid,  a  process  not  requiring  the  co-operation  of  the 
oxygen  of  the  atmosphere ;  secondly,  in  inducing,  in  contact 
with  the  air,  the  formation  of  coloring  matters.  The  first  ac- 
tion seems  to  have  been  overlooked  in  the  case  of  all  the 
bodies  nearly  allied  to  lecanorin.  Mr.  Schunck  found  the 
most  complete  analogy  in  the  case  of  Heeren's  pseudery thrin ; 
"and  if,"  says  he,  "I  am  not  mistaken  in  the  interpretation 
of  his  statements,  his  erythrin  also  undergoes  the  same  de- 
composition as  lecanorin,  for  the  former  is  converted  into 
erythrin-bitter,  by  the  very  same  agencies  by  which  lecanorin 
is  converted  into  orcin,  and,  in  fact,  there  is  the  same  relation 
in  regard  to  all  general  properties  between  erythrin  and  eryth- 
rin-bitter, as  between  lecanorin  and  orcin."  This  circum- 
stance is  of  some  importance,  for,  in  order  to  arrive  at  a 
knowledge  of  the  exact  composition  of  such  complex  bodies 
as  the  coloring  matters  formed  by  the  action  of  alkalies  on 
these  substances,  and  to  understand  perfectly  the  nature  of 
the  process  by  which  they  are  produced,  it  is  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  know  the  exact  substance  out  of  which  each  is  in  the 
last  instance  formed,  the  last  link  of  the  chain  which  precedes 
its  formation. 

Pseudery  thrin. — For  this  substance  it  would  be  advisable 


44 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


to  substitute  another  name,  as,  in  this  case,  the  substance  by 
which  it  is  accompanied  is  not  erythrin  but  lecanorin.  It  is 
contained  in  very  small  quantities  of  lichens  that  have  been 
examined.  It  is  sparingly  soluble  in  cold  water,  from  which 
it  crystalizes,  on  cooling,  in  shining  plates  and  needles.  If 
more  of  the  substance  is  taken  than  the  boiling  water  can 
dissolve,  the  part  left  undissolved  melts  and  collects  at  the 
bottom  of  the  fluid  in  oily  drops,  which,  on  the  temperature 
falling  a  little  below  212,  congeal,  and  form  crystaline  masses. 
This  is  a  characteristic  property  of  pseuderythrin,  and  one 
distinctly  mentioned  by  Heeren.  It  is  easily  soluble  in  alcohol 
and  ether,  and  also  in  alkaline  solutions.  It  gives  compounds 
with  metallic  oxides  by  double  decomposition.  When  dis- 
solved in  ammonia,  and  exposed  to  the  air,  it  gives,  like  leca- 
norin, a  red  coloring  matter ;  but  its  conversion  into  the  latter 
is  much  more  slowly  effected  than  that  of  lecanorin.  When 
subjected  to  dry  distillation,  it  also  gives  a  crystaline  subli- 
mate, accompanied  by  a  copious  disengagement  of  gas. 
When  its  solution  in  an  alkali  is  boiled,  or  left  to  stand  some 
time,  it  imparts  carbonic  acid  to  the  alkali,  the  decomposition 
being  accomplished,  however,  with  much  more  difficulty  than 
with  lecanorin.  The  exact  nature  of  the  substance  left  in 
solution,  after  this  decomposition. 

A. 

ANOTTA. — This  substance  is  obtained  from  a  shrub  origi- 
nally a  native  of  South  America,  and  now  cultivated  in 
Guiana,  St.  Domingo,  and  the  East  Indies.  It  is  termed  the 
Anotta  tree,  or  Bixa  orellana.  It  seldom  attains  to  more 
than  twelve  feet  in  height,  the  leaves  are  divided  by  fibres  of 
a  reddish-brown  color,  they  are  four  inches  long,  broad  at  the 
base,  and  tend  to  a  sharp  point.  The  stem  has  likewise 
fibres  which  in  Jamaica  are  converted  into  serviceable  ropes. 

"  The  tree  produces  oblong  bristled  pods,  somewhat  resem- 
bling those  of  a  chestnut ;  these  are  at  first  of  a  beautiful  rose- 
color,  but  as  they  ripen,  change  to  a  dark-brown,  and  bursting 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


45 


open,  display  a  splendid  crimson  farina  or  pulp,*  in  which  are 
contained  from  thirty  to  forty  seeds  somewhat  resembling 
raisin  stones.  As  soon  as  they  have  arrived  at  maturity,  these 
pods  are  gathered,  divested  of  their  husks,  and  bruised. 
Their  pulpy  substance,  which  seems  to  be  the  only  part  which 
constitutes  the  dye,  is  then  put  into  a  cistern,  with  just  enough 
water  to  cover  it,  and  in  this  situation  it  remains  for  seven  or 
eight  days,  or  until  the  liquor  begins  to  ferment,  which  some- 
times requires  as  many  weeks,  according  to  circumstances.  It 
is  then  strongly  agitated  with  wooden  paddles  and  beaters,  to 
promote  the  separation  of  the  pulp  from  the  seeds,  this  opera 
tion  is  continued  until  these  have  no  longer  any  coloring 
matter  adhering  to  them.  The  liquor  is  then  passed  through 
a  sieve,  and  afterwards  boiled,  the  coloring  matter  being 
thrown  to  the  surface  in  the  form  of  scum,  or  otherwise 
allowed  to  subside  ;  in  either  case  it  is  boiled  in  coppers  till 
reduced  to  a  paste,  Avhen  it  is  made  up  into  cakes  and  dried."t 
Another  and  more  preferable  mode  of  extracting  the  coloring 
matter  from  these  seeds,  is  rubbing  them  one  against  another 
under  water,  so  that  the  mucilaginous  and  other  impure 
matters  contained  in  the  interior  of  the  seeds  are  not  mixed 
with  it.  When  extracted  in  this  way,  the  coloring  matter  is 
allowed  to  settle,  the  water  drawn  off,  and  the  anotta  left  to 
dry.  When  prepared  in  this  manner  it  has  a  fatty  feel,  and  is 
very  homogeneous  and  of  a  deep  red  color,  which  changes  to  a 
dark-brown  by  drying ;  it  has  no  taste,  but  generally  a  dis- 
agreeable smell,  which  is  not  natural,  but  owing  to  stale  urine 
having  been  added  to  it,  for  the  purpose  of  improving  its  color 
and  keeping  it  moist. 

1.  Muriatic  acid  has  no  action  upon  anotta. 

2.  Chlorine  discolors  it. 


*  Dr.  John  found  in  the  pulp  surrounding  the  unfermented  fresh  seeds,  which 
are  about  the  size  of  little  peas,  28  parts  of  coloring  resinous  matter,  26.5  of  vege- 
table gluten,  20  of  ligneous  fibre,  20  of  coloring  extractive  matter,  4  formed  of 
matters  analogous  to  vegetable  gluten,  and  extractive,  and  a  trace  of  spices  and 
acid  matters.  When  anotta  is  used  in  calico-printing,  it  is  usually  mixed  with 
potash  or  ammonia  and  starch. 

t  Ann.  de  Chim.  Tom.  47. 


46  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

3.  Nitric  acid  completely  decomposes  it,  giving  rise  to  seve- 
ral chemical  compounds  which  have  not  been  investigated. 

4.  Sulphuric  acid  poured  upon  it  in  the  solid,  gives  it  a  deep 
blue  color  like  indigo,  which  changes  into  a  dark  dirty  green, 
and  then  to  a  blackish  purple. — (See  Red,  Orange,  and  Yellow 
Dyes,  Parts  III.  and  V.) 

ARCHIL. — A  violet  red  paste  used  in  dyeing,  of  which  the 
substance  called  cudbear,  in  Scotland  (from  Cuthbert,  its  first 
preparer  in  that  form),  is  a  modification.  Two  kinds  of  archil 
are  distinguished  in  commerce,  the  archil  plant  of  the  Cana- 
ries, and  that  of  Auvergne.  The  first  is  most  esteemed  :  it  is 
prepared  from  the  lichen  r ocellus,  which  grows  on  rocks  ad- 
joining the  sea  in  the  Canary  and  Cape  de  Verd  Islands,  in 
Sardinia,  Minorca,  &c,  as  well  as  on  the  rocks  of  Sweden. 
The  second  species  is  prepared  from  the  lichen  parellus, 
which  grows  on  the  basaltic  rocks  of  Auvergne. 

There  are  several  other  species  of  lichen  which  might  be 
employed  in  producing  an  analogous  dye,  were  they  prepared, 
like  the  preceding,  into  the  substance  called  archil.  Hellot 
gives  the  following  method  for  discovering  if  they  possess  this 
property.*  A  little  of  the  plant  is  to  be  put  into  a  glass  vessel ; 
it  is  to  be  moistened  with  ammonia  and  lime-water  in  equal 
parts ;  a  little  muriate  of  ammonia  (sal  ammoniac)  is  added  j 
and  the  small  vessel  is  corked.  If  the  plant  be  of  a  nature  to 
afford  a  red  dye,  after  three  or  four  days,  the  small  portion  of 
liquid,  which  will  run  off  on  inclining  the  vessel,  now  opened, 
will  be  tinged  of  a  crimson  red,  and  the  plant  itself  will  have 
assumed  this  color.  If  the  liquor  or  the  plant  does  not  take 
this  color,  nothing  need  be  hoped  for;  and  it  is  useless  to 
attempt  its  preparation  on  the  great  scale.  Lewis  says,  how- 
ever, that  he  has  tested  in  this  way  a  great  many  mosses,  and 
that  most  of  them  afforded  him  a  yellow  or  reddish-brown 
color  ;  but  that  he  obtained  from  only  a  small  number  a  liquor 
of  a  deep  red,  which  communicated  to  cloth  merely  a  yellowish- 
red  color.t 


*  Berthollet,  vol.  II.,  page  184. 

t  The  Chemical  Works  of  Gaspard  Neuman. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


47 


Prepared  archil  gives  out  its  color  very  readily  to  water, 
ammonia,  and  alcohol.  Its  solution  in  alcohol  is  used  for 
filling  spirit-of-wine  thermometers ;  and  when  these  ther- 
mometers are  well  freed  from  air,  the  liquor  loses  its  color  in 
some  years,  as  Abbe  Nollet  observed.*  The  contact  of  air 
restores  the  color,  which  is  destroyed  anew,  in  vacuo,  in  pro- 
cess of  time.  The  watery  infusion  loses  its  color,  by  the  pri- 
vation of  air,  in  a  few  days  ;  a  singular  phenomenon,  which 
merits  new  researches. 

The  infusion  of  archil  is,  says  M.  Berthollet,t  of  a  crimson 
bordering  on  violet.  As  it  contains  ammonia,  which  has 
already  modified  its  natural  color,  the  fixed  alkalies  can  pro- 
duce little  change  on  it,  only  deepening  the  color  a  little,  and 
making  it  more  violet.  Alum  forms  in  it  a  precipitate  of 
brown  red  ;  and  the  supernatant  liquid  retains  a  yellowish-red 
color.  The  solution  of  tin  affords  a  reddish  precipitate,  which 
falls  down  slowly  ;  the  supernatant  liquid  retains  a  feeble  red 
color.  The  other  metallic  salts  produce  precipitates  which 
offer  nothing  remarkable. 

To  dye  with  archil,  says  Berthollet,  the  quantity  of  this 
substance  deemed  necessary,  according  to  the  quantity  of 
wool  or  stuff  to  be  dyed,  and  according  to  the  shade  to  which 
they  are  to  be  brought,  is  to  be  diffused  in  a  bath  of  water  as 
soon  as  it  begins  to  grow  warm.  The  bath  is  then  heated 
till  it  be  ready  to  boil,  and  the  wool  or  stuff  is  passed  through 
it  without  any  other  preparation,  except  keeping  that  longest 
in,  which  is  to  have  the  deepest  shade.  A  fine  gridelin,  bor- 
dering upon  violet,  is  thereby  obtained  ;  but  this  color  has  no 
permanence.  Hence  archil  is  rarely  employed  with  any  other 
view  than  to  modify,  heighten,  and  give  lustre  to  the  other 
colors.  Hellot  says,  that  having  employed  archil  on  wool 
boiled  with  tartar  and  alum,  the  color  resisted  the  air  no  more 
than  that  which  had  received  no  mordant.  But  he  obtained 
from  herb  archil  {Vorseille  d'herbe)  a  much  more  durable  color, 
by  putting  in  the  bath  some  solution  of  tin.  The  archil 
thereby  loses  its  natural  color,  and  assumes  one  approaching 


*  Mem.  de  l'Acad.  1742. 


t  Vol.  II.  p.  185. 


48 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


more  or  less  to  scarlet,  according  to  the  quantity  of  solution 
of  tin  employed.  This  process  must  be  executed  in  nearly 
the  same  manner  as  that  of  scarlet,  except  that  the  dyeing- 
may  be  performed  in  a  single  bath. 

Archil  is  frequently  had  recourse  to  for  varying  the  different 
shades  and  giving  them  lustre  ;  hence  it  is  used  for  violets, 
lilacs,  mallows,  and  rosemary  flowers.  To  obtain  a  deeper 
tone,  sometimes  a  little  alkali  or  milk  of  lime  is  mixed  with 
it.  The  suites  of  this  browning  may  also  afford  agates, 
rosemary  flowers,  and  other  delicate  colors,  which  cannot  be 
obtained  so  beautiful  by  other  processes.  Alum  cannot  be 
substituted  for  this  purpose  ;  it  not  only  does  not  give  this 
lustre,  but  it  degrades  the  deep  colors. 

The  herb-archil  is  preferable  to  the  archil  of  Auvergne, 
from  the  greater  bloom  which  it  communicates  to  the  colors, 
and  from  the  larger  quantity  of  coloring  matter.  It  has,  be- 
sides, the  advantage  of  bearing  ebullition.  The  latter,  more- 
over, does  not  answer  with  alum,  which  destroys  the  color ; 
but  the  herb  archil  has  the  inconvenience  of  dyeing  in  an 
irregular  manner,  unless  attention  be  given  to  pass  the  cloth 
through  hot  water  as  soon  as  it  comes  out  of  the  dye. 

Archil  alone  is  not  used  for  dyeing  silk,  unless  for  lilacs  ; 
but  silk  is  frequently  passed  through  a  bath  of  archil,  either 
before  dyeing  it  in  other  baths  or  after  it  has  been  dyed,  in 
order  to  modify  different  colors,  or  to  give  them  lustre.  Ex- 
amples of  this  will  be  given  in  treating  of  the  compound 
colors.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  point  out  how  white  silks  are 
passed  through  the  archil  bath.  The  same  process  is  per- 
formed with  a  bath  more  or  less  charged  with  this  color,  for 
silks  already  dyed.* 

Archil  is  in  general  a  very  useful  ingredient  in  dyeing  ;  but 
as  it  is  rich  in  color,  and  communicates  an  alluring  bloom, 
dyers  are  often  tempted  to  abuse  it,  and  to  exceed  the  propor- 
tions that  can  add  to  the  beauty  without  at  the  same  time 
injuring  in  a  dangerous  manner  the  permanence  of  the  colors. 
Nevertheless,  the  color  obtained  when  solution  of  tin  is  em- 

*  See  Silk  Dyeing,  Part  V. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  49 

ployed,  is  less  fugitive  than  without  this  addition :  it  is  red, 
approaching  to  scarlet.  Tin  appears  to  be  the  only  ingredient 
which  can  increase  its  durability.  The  solution  of  tin  may 
be  employed,  not  only  in  the  dyeing  bath,  but  for  the  prepa- 
ration of  the  silk.  In  this  case,  by  mixing  the  archil  with 
other  coloring  substances,  dyes  may  be  obtained  which  have 
lustre  with  sufficient  durability.* 

We  have  spoken  of  the  color  of  archil,  says  Berthollet,  as  if 
it  were  natural  to  it ;  but  it  is,  really,  due  to  an  alkaline  com- 
bination. The  acids  make  it  pass  to  red,  either  by  saturating 
the  alkali,  or  by  substituting  themselves  for  the  alkali. 

The  lichen  which  produces  archil  is  subjected  to  another 
preparation,  to  make  turnsole  (litmus).  This  article  is  made 
in  Holland.  The  lichen  comes  from  the  Canary  Islands, 
and  also  from  Sweden.  It  is  reduced  to  a  fine  powder  by 
means  of  a  mill,  and  a  certain  proportion  of  potash  is  mixed 
with  it.  The  mixture  is  watered  with  urine,  and  allowed  to 
suffer  a  species  of  fermentation.  When  this  has  arrived  at  a 
certain  degree,  carbonate  of  lime  in  powder  is  added,  to  give 
consistence  and  weight  to  the  paste,  which  is  afterwards  re- 
duced into  small  parallelopipeds  that  are  carefully  dried.t 

Westring,  of  Stockholm,  examined  150  species  of  lichens, 
among  which  he  found  several  that  might  be  rendered  useful ; 
but  in  his  time  this  subject  was  not  thoroughly  understood, 
as  we  have  shown  in  the  first  part  of  this  chapter.  He  recom- 
mends that  the  coloring  matter  should  be  extracted  in  the 
places  where  they  grow,  which  would  save  a  vast  expense  in 
curing,  package,  carriage,  and  waste.  He  styles  the  coloring 
substance  itself  cudbear,  persio,  or  turnsole  ;  and  distributes 
the  lichens  as  follows : — 1st.  Those  which,  left  to  themselves, 
exposed  to  moderate  heat  and  moisture,  may  be  fixed  without 
a  mordant  upon  wool  or  silk :  such  are  the  L.  cinereus. 


*  The  watery  solution  of  archil,  applied  to  cold  marble,  penetrates  it,  communi- 
cating a  beautiful  violet  color,  or  a  blue  bordering  on  purple,  which  resists  the  air 
much  longer  than  the  archil  colors  applied  to  other  substances.  Dufay  says  that 
he  has  seen,  marble  tinged  with  this  color  preserve  it  without  alteration  at  the  end  of 
two  years. 

t  Journal  des  Arts  et  Manufactures,  torn.  II. 

7 


50 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


cematonta,  ventosics,  corallinus,  westi'ingii,  saxatilis,  con- 
spassus,  barbatus,  plicatus,  vulpinus,  &c. 

2.  Those  which  develop  a  coloring  matter,  fixable  likewise 
without  mordant,  but  which  require  boiling  and  a  complicated 
preparation;  such  are  the  lichens  subcameus,  dillenii,  farin- 
aceus,  jubatus,  furfuraceus,  pulmonarens,  cornigatus,  coc- 
ciferns,  digitutas,  ancialis.  aduncus,  &c.  Saltpetre  or  sea- 
salt  is  requisite  to  improve  the  lustre  and  fastness  of  the  dye 
given  by  this  group  to  silk. 

3.  Those  which  require  a  peculiar  process  to  develop  their 
color ;  such  as  those  which  become  purple  through  the  agency 
of  stale  urine  or  ammonia.  Westring  employed  the  following 
mode  of  testing : — 

He  put  3  or  4  drachms  of  the  dried  and  powdered  lichen  into  a  flask ;  moistened 
it  with  three  or  four  measures  of  cold  spring  water;  put  the  stuff  to  be  dyed  into 
the  mixture,  and  left  the  flask  in  a  cool  place.  Sometimes  he  added  a  little  salt, 
saltpetre,  quicklime,  or  sulphate  of  copper.  If  no  color  appeared,  he  then  moist- 
ened the  lichen  with  water  containing  one-twentieth  of  sal  ammoniac,  and  one- 
tenth  of  quicklime,  and  set  the  mixture  aside  in  a  cool  place  from  eight  to  fourteen 
days.    There  appeared,  in  most  cases,  a  reddish  or  violet  colored  tint. 

Thus  the  lichen  cinercus  dyed  silk  a  deep  carmelite,  and 
wool  a  light  carmelite;  the  I.  physodes  gave  a  yellowish- 
gray  ;  the  pustulatus,  a  rose  red ;  sa?tguinarius,  gray ;  tar- 
tareus,  found  on  the  rocks  of  Norway,  Scotland,  and  England, 
dyes  a  crimson-red.  In  Jutland,  cudbear  is  made  from  it,  by 
grinding  the  dry  lichen,  sifting  it,  then  setting  it  to  ferment  in 
a  close  vessel  with  ammonia.  The  lichen  must  be  of  the  third 
year's  growth  to  yield  an  abundant  dye  ;  and  that  which  grows 
near  the  sea  is  the  best.  It  loses  half  its  weight  by  drying. 
A  single  person  may  gather  from  twenty  to  thirty  pounds  a 
day  in  situations  where  it  abounds.  No  less  than  2,239,685 
pounds  were  manufactured  at  Christiansand,  Flekkefiort,  and 
Fakrsund,  in  Norway,  in  the  course  of  the  six  years  prior  to 
1812.  Since  more  solid  dyes  of  the  same  shade  have  been 
invented,  the  archil  has  gone  much  into  disuse.  Federigo,  of 
Florence,  who  revived  its  use  at  the  beginning  of  the  four- 
teenth century,  made  such  an  immense  fortune  by  its  prepara- 
tion, that  his  family  became  one  of  the  grandees  of  that  city, 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


51 


under  the  name  of  Oricellarii,  or  Rucellarii.  For  more  than 
a  century,  Italy  possessed  the  exclusive  art  of  making  archil, 
obtaining  the  lichens  from  the  islands  of  the  Mediterranean. — 
(See  Litmus.) 

B 

BARWOOD. — This  is  a  wood  of  which  no  good  chemical 
description  has  yet  appeared.  As  a  dyewood,  it  possesses 
many  peculiar  properties,  and  is  also  becoming  extensively 
useful  in  the  dye-house.  It  contains  a  very  great  quantity  of 
coloring  matter,  but  is  very  slightly  soluble  in  water.  This 
difficulty  is  overcome  by  the  following  very  ingenious  ar- 
rangement : — ■ 

The  coloring  matter,  while  hot,  combines  easily  with  the  proto-compounds  of  tin, 
forming  an  insoluble  cake  of  a  rich  red  color ;  the  goods  to  be  dyed  are  impregna- 
ted with  a  proto-chloride  of  tin,  combined  with  sumac ;  the  proper  proportion  of 
barwood  for  the  color  wanted  is  put  into  a  boiler  and  brought  to  boil ;  the  goods 
thus  impregnated  are  put  into  this  boiling  water  containing  the  rasped  wood,  and  the 
small  portion  of  coloring  matter  dissolved  in  the  water  is  immediately  taken  up  by 
the  goods.  The  water,  thus  exhausted,  dissolves  a  new  portion  of  coloring  matter, 
which  is  again  taken  up  by  the  goods,  and  so  on  till  the  tin  upon  the  cloth  has 
become  saturated. 

A  good  deal  of  attention  and  skill  is  necessary  to  know  the 
exact  point  to  take  the  goods  out  of  the  bath,  otherwise  the 
dyer  may  either  have  the  color  poor,  or  by  being  in  too  long, 
give  it  a  brown  color.  It  is  not,  therefore,  every  dyer  who 
can  dye  good  barwood  red.  Barwood  cannot  be  used  for  any 
composition  color  in  the  same  manner  as  the  other  red  woods 
are,  probably  owing  to  the  little  quantity  of  coloring  matter 
which  water  dissolves  from  it. — (See  chapter  I,  Part  III,  arti- 
cle Barwood  Red  Spir  its,  and  chapter  III,  of  the  same  Part, 
article  Barwood  Red. 

BARK. — (See  Quercitron.) 

BERRIES  OF  AVIGNON,  and  Persian  Berries.— A 
yellow  dye-drug,  the  fruit  of  the  rhamnus  infectorius,  a  plant 
cultivated  in  Provence,  Languedoc,  and  Dauphine,  for  the 
sake  of  its  berries,  which  are  plucked  before  they  are  ripe, 
while  they  have  a  greenish  hue.    Another  variety  comes 


52 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


from  Persia ;  it  is  larger  than  the  French  kind,  and  has  su 
perior  properties.  The  principal  substances  contained  in 
these  berries  are,  L  A  coloring  matter,  which  is  united  with 
a  matter  insoluble  in  ether,  little  soluble  in  concentrated  alco- 
hol, and  very  soluble  in  water :  it  appears  to  be  volatile. 
2.  A  matter  remarkable  for  its  bitterness,  which  is  soluble  in 
water  and  alcohol.  3.  A  third  principle,  in  small  quantity. 
A  decoction  of  one  part  of  the  Avignon  or  Persian  berry  in 
ten  of  water,  affords  a  brown-yellow  liquor  bordering  upon 
green,  having  the  smell  of  a  vegetable  extract,  and  a  slightly 
bitter  taste. 

With  gelatine  that  decoction  gives,  after  some  time,  a  slight 
precipitate, — 

With    alkalis       -       -       -    a  yellow  hue, 

—  acids  a  slight  muddiness, 

—  lime-water         -       -    a  greenish-yellow  tint, 

—  alum  a  yellow  color, 

—  red  sulphate  of  iron    -    an  olive-green  color, 

—  sulphate  of  copper  -       an  olive  color, 

—  proto-muriate  of  tin        a  greenish-yellow  with  a 

slight  precipitate.* 
BRAZIL-WOOD. — This  dyewood  derives  its  name  from 
the  part  of  America  whence  it  was  first  imported.  It  has 
also  the  name  Pernambuco,  wood  of  Saint  Martha,  and  of 
Sapan,  according  to  the  places  which  produce  it.  Linnaeus 
distinguishes  the  tree  which  produces  the  Brazil-wood  by  the 
name  of  Ccesalpinia  crista.  It  commonly  grows  in  dry  places 
among  rocks.t    Its  trunk  is  very  large,  crooked,  and  full  of 


*  lire's  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manufactures,  &c.,  vol.  i.,  p.  124. 

t  The  ibiripitanga,  or  Brazil-wood,  called  in  Pernambuco,  the  pao  da  rainha 
(  Queen's  wood),  on  account  of  its  being  a  government  monopoly,  is  now  rarely  to 
be  seen  within  many  leagues  of  the  coast,  owing  to  the  improvident  manner  in 
which  it  has  been  cut  down  by  the  government  agents,  without  any  regard  being 
paid  to  the  size  of  the  tree  or  to  its  cultivation.  It  is  not  a  lofty  tree.  At  a  short 
distance  from  the  ground,  innumerable  branches  spring  forth,  and  extend  in  every 
iirection  in  a  straggling  and  unpleasing  manner.  The  leaves  are  small,  and  not 
luxuriant ;  the  wood  is  very  hard  and  heavy,  takes  a  high  polish,  and  sinks  in 
water ;  the  only  valuable  portion  of  it  is  the  heart,  as  the  outward  coat  of  wood 
has  not  any  peculiarity.    The  name  of  this  wood  is  derived  from  Crasas,  a  glow- 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


53 


knots.  It  is  very  hard,  susceptible  of  a  fine  polish,  and  sinks 
in  water.  It  is  pale  when  newly  cleft,  but  becomes  red  on 
exposure  to  the  air.  It  has  different  shades  of  red  and 
orange.  Its  goodness  is  determined  particularly  by  its  den- 
sity. When  chewed,  a  saccharine  taste  is  perceived.  It  may 
be  distinguished  from  red  saunders  wood,  as  the  latter  does 
not  yield  its  color  to  water. 

According  to  Dufay,  a  red  color,  passing  into  violet,  may 
be  given  by  the  alcohol  of  Brazil-wood  to  heated  marble.  If 
the  heat  be  increased  while  the  stained  marbles  are  coated 
with  wax,  the  color  runs  through  all  the  shades  of  brown, 
and  settles  into  a  chocolate.  Berth ollet's,  Dingle r's,  Guliche's, 
and  Poerner's  observations  on  this  wood  are  of  no  consequence 
to  the  practical  man,  at  the  present  day.  For  the  best  method 
of  extracting  the  coloring  matter,  and  dyeing  with  it,  see 
chapter  III.,  Part  III.,  article  Brazil-wood  Red,  and  the  close 
of  this  chapter,  article,  Extracting  Coloring  Matter  from 
Dyewoods. 

c. 

CAMWOOD  may  be  ranked  with  the  Brazil-woods,  as  it 
possesses  similar  dyeing  properties.  It  is  imported  from  Sierra 
Leone,  and  is  very  extensively  used  in  the  dye-house. 

Though  Camwood  may  be  ranked  amongst  the  Brazil 
woods,  being  used  in  the  dye-house  for  the  same  purposes, 
the  color  from  it  is  more  permanent,  and  in  many  instances 
the  color  obtained  is  much  more  beautiful.  The  precipitates 
from  a  decoction  of  the  wood  are  more  yellow  than  the  Brazil- 
woods, which  give  the  colors  dyed  by  it  a  certain  degree  of 
richness  not  obtained  with  the  other  woods.  It  is  not  so  easily 
affected  by  alkaline  substances,  and  appears  to  contain  more 
tannin  than  the  Brazil-woods.  With  it  (Camwood)  the  fol- 
lowing are  some  of  the  results  of  a  series  of  experiments  which 


ing  fire  or  coal — its  botanical  name  is  Caesalpinia  Crasileto.  The  leaves  are  pin- 
nated ;  the  flowers  white  and  papilionaceous,  growing  in  a  pyramidal  spike ;  one 
species  has  flowers  variegated  with  red.  The  branches  are  slender  and  full  of 
small  prickles.    There  are  nine  species. — Bell's  Geography, 


54 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


a  friend  of  ours,  a  celebrated  calico-printer,  recently  insti- 
tuted : — 

1.  Protosulphate  of  iron,  gives  a  brownish  black  precipitate. 

2.  Persulphate,  a  reddish  brown. 

3.  Protosalts  of  tin  give  the  solution  a  very  bright  carmine  red  color,  but  little 
precipitate. 

4.  Lead  salts,  a  rich  orange  precipitate  after  standing  some  time. 

5.  Acetate  of  copper  gives  a  light  reddish  brown. 

6.  Nitrate  of  silver,  a  reddish-yellow  precipitate. 

7.  Perchloride  of  mercury,  a  light  orange  by  standing. 

8.  Alum  gives  the  solution  a  beautiful  red  color. 

This  wood  may  also  be  used  for  browns  and  other  compo- 
sition colors  where  Brazil-wood  is  commonly  used  ;  it  is  more 
soluble  in  water,  and  has  other  advantageous  properties  which 
bid  fair  to  render  it  a  substitute  for  many  purposes  in  which 
the  best  Brazil-woods  are  now  employed. — (See  chapter  I., 
Part  III.,  and  chapter  IV.,  Part  IV.) 

CARMINE*  is,  according  to  Pellettier  and  Cevanton,  a 
triple  compound  of  the  coloring  substance,  and  an  animal 
matter  contained  in  cochineal,  combined  with  an  acid  added 
to  effect  the  precipitation.  The  preparation  of  this  article  is 
still  a  mystery,  because,  upon  the  one  hand,  its  consumption 
being  very  limited,  few  persons  are  engaged  in  its  manufac- 
ture, and  upon  the  other,  the  raw  material  being  costly,  exten- 
sive experiments  on  it  cannot  be  conveniently  made.  Success 
in  this  business  is  said  to  depend  not  a  little  upon  dexterity  of 
manipulation,  and  upon  knowing  the  instant  for  arresting 
the  further  action  of  heat  upon  the  materials. 

There  is  sold  at  the  shops  different  kinds  of  carmine,  dis- 
tinguished by  numbers,  and  possessed  of  a  corresponding 
value.  This  difference  depends  upon  two  causes  ;  either  upon 
the  proportion  of  alumina  added  in  the  precipitation,  or  of  a 
certain  quantity  of  vermilion  put  in  to  dilute  the  color.  In 
the  first  case  the  shade  is  paler,  in  the  second  it  has  not  the 
same  lustre.  It  is  always  easy  to  discover  the  proportion  of 
the  adulteration.  By  availing  ourselves  of  the  property  of 
pure  carmine  to  dissolve  in  water  of  ammonia,  the  whole 


*  See  Cochineal. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  55 

foreign  matter  remains  untouched,  and  we  may  estimate  its 
amount  by  drying  the  residuum.  To  make  ordinary  carmine, 
proceed  as  follows  : — 

Take  1  pound  of  cochineal  in  powder ; 

3  drachms  and  a  half  of  carbonate  of  potash; 
8  drachms  of  alum  in  powder ; 
3  drachms  and  a  half  of  fish-glue. 

The  cochineal  must  be  boiled  along  with  the  potash  in  a 
copper  containing  five  pailsful  of  water  (60  pints) ;  the  ebul- 
lition being  allayed  with  cold  water.  After  boiling  a  few 
minutes  the  copper  must  be  taken  from  the  fire,  and  placed 
on  a  table  at  such  an  angle  as  that  the  liquor  may  be  con- 
veniently transvased.  The  pounded  alum  is  then  thrown  in, 
and  the  decoction  is  stirred  ;  it  changes  color  immediately,  and 
inclines  to  a  more  brilliant  tint.  At  the  end  of  fifteen  minutes 
the  cochineal  is  deposited  at  the  bottom,  and  the  bath  becomes 
as  clear  as  if  it  had  been  filtered.  It  contains  the  coloring 
matter,  and  probably  a  little  alum  in  suspension.  We  decant 
it  then  into  a  copper  of  equal  capacity,  and  place  it  over  the 
fire,  adding  the  fish-glue  dissolved  in  a  great  deal  of  water, 
and  passed  through  a  searce.  At  the  moment  of  ebullition, 
the  carmine  is  perceived  to  rise  up  to  the  surface  of  the  bath, 
and  a  coagulum  is  formed,  like  what  takes  place  in  clarifica- 
tions with  white  of  egg.  The  copper  must  be  immediately 
taken  from  the  fire,  and  its  contents  be  stirred  with  a  spatula. 
In  the  course  of  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes  the  carmine  is  de- 
posited. The  supernatant  liquor  is  decanted,  and  the  deposite 
must  be  drained  upon  a  filter  of  fine  canvass  or  linen.  If 
the  operation  has  been  well  conducted,  the  carmine,  when 
dry,  crushes  readily  under  the  fingers.  What  remains  after 
the  precipitation  of  the  carmine  is  still  much  loaded  with 
color,  and  may  be  employed  very  advantageously  for  carmi- 
nated  lakes. — (See  Lake.) 

By  the  old  German  process,  carmine  is  prepared  by  means 
of  alum  without  any  other  addition.  As  soon  as  the  water 
boils,  the  powdered  cochineal  is  thrown  into  it,  stirred  well, 
and  then  boiled  for  six  minutes;  a  little  ground  alum  is 
added,  and  the  boiling  is  continued  for  three  minutes  more ; 


56 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  vessel  is  removed  from  the  fire,  the  liquor  is  filtered  and 
left  for  three  days  in  porcelain  vessels,  in  the  course  of  which 
time  a  red  matter  falls  down,  which  must  be  separated  and 
dried  in  the  shade.  This  is  carmine,  which  is  sometimes 
previously  purified  by  washing.  The  liquor  after  three  days 
more  lets  fall  an  inferior  kind  of  carmine,  but  the  residuary 
coloring  matter  may  also  be  separated  by  the  muriate  of  tin.* 

The  proportions  for  the  above  process  are  580  parts  of  clear 
river  water,  16  parts  of  cochineal,  and  1  part  of  alum ;  there 
is  obtained  from  1\  to  2  parts  of  carmine. 

Another  carmine  with  tartar. — To  the  boiling  water  the 
cochineal  is  added,  and  after  some  time  a  little  cream  of  tar- 
tar ;  in  eight  minutes  more  we  add  a  little  alum,  and  continue 
the  boiling  for  a  minute  or  two  longer.  Then  take  it  from  the 
fire  and  pour  it  into  glass  or  porcelain  vessels,  filter,  and  let  it 
repose  quietly  till  the  carmine  falls  down.  We  then  decant 
and  dry  in  the  shade.  The  proportions  are  8  pounds  of  water, 
8  oz.  of  cochineal,  i  oz.  of  cream  of  tartar,  f  oz.  of  alum,  and 
the  product  is  an  ounce  of  carmine. 

The  process  of  Alxon  or  Langlois. — Boil  two  pails  and  a 
half  of  river  water  (30  pints),  throw  into  it,  a  little  afterwards, 
a  pound  of  cochineal,  add  a  filtered  solution  of  six  drachms 
of  carbonate  of  soda  and  a  pound  of  water,  and  let  the  mix- 
ture boil  for  half  an  hour  ;  remove  the  copper  from  the  fire,  and 
let  it  cool,  inclining  it  to  one  side.  Add  six  drachms  of  pulv- 
erized alum,  stir  with  a  brush  to  quicken  the  solution  of  the 
salt,  and  let  the  whole  rest  20  minutes.  The  liquor,  which  has 
a  fine  scarlet  color,  is  to  be  carefully  decanted  into  another 
vessel,  and  there  is  to  be  put  into  it  the  whites  of  two  eggs, 
well  beat  up,  with  half  a  pound  of  water.  Stir  again  with  a 
brush.  The  copper  is  replaced  on  a  fire,  the  alumina  becomes 
concrete,  and  carries  down  the  coloring  matter  with  it.  The 
copper  is  to  be  taken  from  the  fire,  and  left  at  rest  for  25  or  30 


*  M.  M.  Pelletier  and  Caventon  remark,  that  to  obtain  a  beautiful  shade,  the 
muriate  of  tin  ought  to  be  entirely  at  the  maximum  of  oxidizement ;  and  it  is  in 
reality  in  this  state  that  it  must  exist  in  the  solution  of  tin  prepared  according  to 
the  proportions  prescribed  by  Berthollet,  in  his  work  on  dyeing. — (See  chapter  I, 
Part  IV.,  Mordant  A.) 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


57 


minutes  to  allow  the  carmine  to  fall  down.  When  the  super- 
natant liquor  is  drawn  off,  the  deposite  is  placed  upon  a  filter 
cloth  stretched  upon  a  frame  to  drain.  When  the  carmine 
has  the  consistence  of  cream  cheese,  it  is  taken  from  the  filter 
with  a  silver  or  ivory  knife,  and  set  to  dry  upon  plates  covered 
with  paper,  to  screen  it  from  dust.  A  pound  of  cochineal  gives 
in  this  way  an  ounce  and  a  half  of  carmine. 

Process  of  Madame  Cenette,  of  Amsterdam,  with  salt  of 
sorrel. — Into  six  pails  of  river  water  boiling  hot  throw  two 
pounds  of  the  finest  cochineal  in  powder,  continue  the  ebulli- 
tion for  two  hours,  and  then  add  3  oz.  of  refined  saltpetre,  and 
after  a  few  minutes  4  oz.  of  salt  of  sorrel.  In  ten  minutes 
more  take  the  copper  from  the  fire  and  let  it  settle  for  four 
hours ;  then  draw  off  the  liquor  with  a  syphon  into  flat  plates 
and  leave  it  there  for  three  weeks.  Afterwards  there  is  form- 
ed upon  the  surface  a  pretty  thick  mouldiness,  which  is  to  be 
removed  dexterously  in  one  pellicle  by  a  slip  of  whalebone. 
Should  the  film  tear  and  fragments  of  it  fall  down,  they  must 
be  removed  with  the  utmost  care.  Decant  the  supernatant 
water  with  a  syphon,  the  end  of  which  may  touch  the  bottom 
of  the  vessel,  because  the  layer  of  carmine  is  very  firm. 
Whatever  water  remains  must  be  sucked  away  by  a  pipette. 
The  carmine  is  dried  in  the  shade,  and  has  an  extraordinary 
lustre. 

Carmine  by  the  salt  of  tin,  or  the  Carmine  of  China. — 
Boil  the  cochineal  in  river  water,  adding  some  Roman  alum, 
then  pass  through  a  fine  cloth  to  remove  the  cochineal,  and 
set  the  liquor  aside.  It  becomes  brighter  on  keeping.  After 
having  heated  this  liquor,  pour  into  it,  drop  by  drop,  solution 
of  tin  till  the  carmine  be  precipitated.  The  proportions  are 
one  pailful  of  water,  20  oz.  of  cochineal,  and  60  grains  of 
alum,  with  a  solution  of  tin  containing  4  oz.  of  the  metal. 

To  revive  or  brighten  Carmine. — We  may  brighten  ordin- 
ary carmine,  and  obtain  a  very  fine  and  clear  pigment,  by  dis- 
solving it  in  water  of  ammonia.  For  this  purpose,  we  leave 
ammonia  upon  carmine  in  the  heat  of  the  sun,  till  all  its  color 
be  extracted,  and  the  liquor  has  got  a  fine  red  tinge.  It  must 
be  then  drawn  off  and  precipitated,  by  acetic  acid  and  alcohol, 

8 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


next  washed  with  alcohol,  and  dried.  Carmine,  dissolved  in 
ammonia,  has  been  long  employed  by  painters,  under  the 
name  of  liquid  carmine.*  This  valuable  pigment  is  often 
adulterated  with  starch.  Water  of  ammonia  enables  us  to 
detect  this  fraud  by  dissolving  the  pure  carmine,  and  leaving 
the  starchy  matter,  as  well  as  most  other  sophisticating  sub- 
stances.   Such  debased  carmine  is  apt  to  spoil  with  damp.t 

There  occurs  in  commerce  a  kind  of  very  fine  colored  and 
very  expensive  carmine,  in  the  form  of  cakes,  which  owes  its 
fine  color  to  an  adulteration.  Upon  being  made  use  of  for 
ordinary  painting  no  difference  has  been  observed ;  but  by  the 
microscope  it  may  be  discovered  that  half  of  it  consists  of  starch 
(wheat  starch),  which  imparts  to  the  finely  divided  carmine  a 
clear  ground,  and  a  brilliancy  highly  improving  the  appear- 
ance of  the  color.  When  such  carmine  is  mixed  with  much 
water,  it  diffuses  itself  throughout,  and  is  for  a  long  time  sus- 
pended ;  but  upon  pouring  off  the  water  a  white  sediment  re- 
mains similar  to  white  lead.  The  sediment  is  starch.  Besides 
this  distinct  form  and  size  of  an  amilaceous  body,  when  it  is 
examined  by  its  reaction  upon  tincture  of  sodium,  it  produces 
the  well-known  blue  color.  This  sediment,  when  heated  with 
water,  forms  a  paste.  The  addition  of  white  lead  is  detected 
by  its  weight,  but  the  addition  of  starch  is  not  so  easily  dis- 
covered; but  by  means  of  the  microscope,  the  adulteration 
may  be  with  certainty  recognized,  and  confirmed  by  chemical 
examination. 

From  the  foregoing  observations,  it  will  be  seen  why,  in 
dyeing  scarlet,  the  employment  of  alum  is  carefully  avoided, 
as  this  salt  tends  to  convert  the  shade  to  a  crimson.  The  pres- 
ence of  an  alkali  would  seem  less  to  be  feared.  The  alkali 
would  occasion,  no  doubt,  a  crimson-colored  bath  ;  but  it  would 
be  easy  in  this  case  to  restore  the  color,  by  using  a  larger  quan- 


*  According  to  M.  Von  Grotthuss,  carmine  may  be  deprived  of  its  golden  shade 
by  ammonia,  and  subsequent  treatment  with  acetic  acid  and  alcohol.  Since  this 
fact  was  made  known,  some  beautiful  carmines  have  been  made. 

t  Carmine  is  the  finest  red  color  which  the  painter  possesses.  It  is  principally 
employed  in  miniature  painting,  water  colors,  and  to  tint  artificial  flowers,  because 
it  is  more  transparent  than  the  other  colors. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


59 


tity  of  tartar.  We  should,  therefore,  procure  the  advantage 
of  having  a  bath  better  charged  with  coloring  matter  and  ani- 
mal substance.  It  is  for  experience  on  the  large  scale  to  de- 
termine this  point.  As  to  the  earthy  salts,  they  must  be  care- 
fully avoided ;  and  if  the  waters  be  selenitish,  it  would  be  a 
reason  for  adding  a  little  alkali. 

To  obtain  crimson,  it  is  sufficient,  as  we  know,  to  add  alum 
to  the  cochineal  bath,  or  to  boil  the  scarlet  cloth  in  alum  water. 
It  is  also  proper  to  diminish  the  dose  of  the  salt  of  tin,  since  it 
is  found  to  counteract  the  action  of  the  alum.  The  alkalies 
ought  to  be  rejected  as  a  means  of  changing  scarlet  to  crim- 
son. In  fact,  crimsons  prepared  by  this  process  cannot  be 
permanent  colors,  as  they  pass  into  reds  by  the  action  of  acids. 
— (See  chapter  I.,  Part  IV.,  and  chapter  III.,  Part  V.,  article 
Crimson.) 

CARTHAMUS. — (See  Safflower.) 

CATECHUE. — This  is  a  dry  extract  prepared  from  the 
wood  of  a  species  of  sensitive  plant  named  acacia  catachue. 
This  substance  was  long  considered  as  an  earth  which  was 
found  in  Japan ;  and  was,  consequently,  called  terra  Japanica. 
Its  true  character  was  first  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Kerr,  who  pub- 
lished a  paper  describing  the  process  of  obtaining  and  manu- 
facturing it  from  the  plant.  This  plant  is  indigenous  to 
Hindostan,  flourishing  abundantly  in  mountainous  parts.  It 
grows  to  about  twelve  feet  in  height,  and  one  foot  in  diameter, 
and  is  covered  with  a  thick,  rough,  brown  bark.  The  extract 
obtained  from  the  tree  is  made  from  a  decoction  of  the  wood. 
As  soon  as  the  trees  are  felled,  all  the  exterior  white  wood  is 
carefully  cut  away,  the  interior  or  colored  wood  is  then  cut 
into  chips ;  narrow  mouthed  unglazed  pots  are  nearly  filled 
with  these,  and  water  is  added  to  cover  them  and  reach  to 
the  top  of  the  vessel.  When  this  is  half  evaporated  by  boil- 
ing, the  decoction  without  straining  is  poured  into  a  shallow 
earthen  vessel,  and  further  reduced  two-thirds  by  boiling.  It 
is  then  set  in  a  cool  place  for  one  day,  and  afterwards  evapor- 
ated by  the  heat  of  the  sun,  being  stirred  several  times  during 
that  process.  When  it  is  reduced  to  a  considerable  thickness 
it  is  spread  upon  a  mat  or  cloth,  which  has  been  previously 


60 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


covered  with  the  ashes  of  cow-dung.  This  mass  is  divided 
with  a  string  into  quadrangular  pieces,  which  are  completely 
dried  by  being  turned  frequently  in  the  sun,  and  are  then  fit 
for  sale.  It  is  a  brittle,  compact  solid,  of  a  dark  brown  or 
chocolate  color ;  has  no  smell,  but  a  very  stringent  taste ;  is 
soluble  in  water ;  contains  a  great  amount  of  tannin,  and  a 
peculiar  acid,  which  has  been  named  catechuic  acid ;  it  is  the 
reaction  of  these,  with  oxygen  and  other  chemical  agents, 
that  constitutes  the  dyeing  properties.  A  solution  of  catechue 
in  water  is  a  beautiful  red-brown  color,  which  will  enable  the 
reader  to  follow  within  his  mind  the  action  of  the  following 
re-agents  with  a  solution  of  catechue  in  water : — 

1.  Acids  brighten  the  colors  of  the  solution. 

2.  Alkaline  substances  darken  the  solution  which  increases  by  standing. 

3.  Protosalts  of  iron  gives  an  olive-brown  precipitate. 

4.  Persalts  of  iron,  olive-green  with  a  brownish  tint. 

5.  Nitrate  and  sulphate  of  copper,  turn  the  liquor  yellowish  brown,  giving  a 

precipitate  by  a  short  exposure. 

6.  Acetate  of  copper  a  deep  brown  preciptate. 

7.  Salts  of  lead,  salmon-colored  precipitate. 

8.  Tin  salts,  brownish-yellow. 

9.  Bichromate  of  potash,  deep  red  brown  preciptate. 

These  precipitates  are  all  insoluble,  and  have  an  attraction 
for  vegetable  and  animal  substances,  so  that  catechue  in  the 
hands  of  the  intelligent  dyer  becomes  an  agent  of  extensive 
application.  It  is  but  a  few  years  since  this  substance  was 
first  introduced  into  the  fancy  dye-house,  as  an  agent  for  dye- 
ing permanent  browns  upon  cotton  yarn*  Its  introduction 
raised  a  considerable  excitement  throughout  the  trade,  in 
Great  Britain,  but  the  parties  who  introduced  it  had  not  a 
long  monopoly,  from  their  giving  the  name  of  the  new  brown 
that  of  catechue  brown  ;  which  at  once  betrayed  their  secret, 
and  before  long,  catechue  brown  became  quite  common.  But 
during  the  experiments  to  get  at  the  method  of  dyeing  brown, 
its  application  to  many  other  colors  became  known,  so  that 
not  only  browns,  but  fawns,  drabs,  olives,  and  blacks,  were 
all  produced  by  catechue. 


*  See  chapter  IX.  Part  III.  article,  Catechue  Brown. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


61 


When  catechue  is  dissolved  in  boiling  water  it  has  a  gummy 
consistence,  so  that  yarn  cannot  be  dyed  in  it  in  this  state. 
The  addition  of  some  metallic  salt,  such  as  the  nitrate  or  sul- 
phate of  copper,  sulphate  of  zinc,  chloride  of  tin,  &c.  destroys 
the  gummy  principle,  so  that  some  one  of  these  salts  must 
be  added  previous  to  dyeing  yarns  by  catechue.  The  chemi- 
cal change  which  takes  place  on  the  addition  of  these  salts  is 
not  well  understood.  The  explanation  generally  given,  is, 
that  the  salt  added  oxidizes  the  catechue,  producing  an  insol- 
uble oxide  which,  however,  is  soluble  in  a  solution  of  catechue 
not  oxidized,  so  that  the  salt  added  only  oxidizes  a  part,  which 
remains  in  solution  in  the  portion  not  oxidized.  We  do  not 
think  this  explanation  is  correct,  because  the  oxidation  of  cat- 
echue is  its  conversion  into  another  substance  of  a  darker 
color  ;  whereas  the  addition  of  a  little  nitrate  of  copper,  for 
instance,  renders  the  solution  lighter,  because  the  fixation  of 
the  color  upon  the  yarns  depends  upon  its  oxidation,  so  that 
the  portion  oxidized  before  going  upon  the  goods  would 
neither  alter  in  shade,  nor  produce  a  different  shade  from  that 
it  receives  in  the  solution.  As  an  instance  of  this,  if  into  a 
solution  of  catechue  in  water  there  be  put  sulphate  of  zinc 
instead  of  nitrate  of  copper,  a  piece  of  cotton  put  into  this 
receives  a  light  buff  or  nankeen  color  ;  if  this  is  now  passed 
through  a  weak  solution  of  lime,  and  then  exposed  to  the  air, 
it  absorbs  oxygen,  and  in  a  few  hours  becomes  a  dark  perma- 
nent brown,  little  inferior  to  that  dyed  in  the  usual  way. 
There  is,  however,  no  doubt  that  the  addition  of  a  metallic 
salt  facilitates  the  oxidation  of  the  catechue  when  upon  the 
goods. 

According  to  Dr.  Ure,*  a  solution  of  one  part  of  catechue 
in  ten  parts  of  water,  which  is  reddish  brown,  exhibits  the 
following  results :  with— 

1.  Acids        -----  A  brightened  shade. 

2.  Alkalis      -----  A  darkened  shade. 

3.  Proto-sulphate  of  iron       -      -  Olive  brown  precipitate. 

4.  Per-sulphate  of  iron  -  Olive  green  do. 

5.  Sulphate  of  copper    -  Yellowish  brown. 

*  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manufactures,  &c.  vol.  I.,  p.  227. 


62 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


6.  Alum  - 

7.  Per-nitrate  of  iron 

8.  Nitrate  of  copper 

9.  Nitrate  of  lead  - 

10.  Proto-nitrate  of  mercury  - 

11.  Muriate  of  alumina  - 

12.  Muriate  of  tin  - 

13.  Per-chloride  of  tin 

14.  Corrosive  sublimate  - 

15.  Acetate  of  alumina  - 

16.  Acetate  of  copper 

17.  Acetate  of  lead 

18.  Bichromate  of  potash 


-  A  brightening  of  the  liquor. 

-  Olive  green  precipitate. 


-  Yellowish  brown  do. 

-  Salmon  do. 

-  Milk-coffee  do. 

-  Brown-yellow. 

-  Do.  do. 

-  Do.  darker. 

-  Light  chocolate  do. 


Brightening  of  the  liquor. 


-  Copious  brown  precipitate. 

-  Salmon  colored  do. 

-  Copious  brown  do. 


Good  catechue,  says  Dr.  Ure,*  is  a  brittle  compact  solid,  of 
a  dull  fracture.  It  has  no  smell,  but  a  very  astringent  taste. 
Water  dissolves  the  whole  of  it,  except  the  earthy  matter, 
which  is  probably  added  during  its  preparation.  Alcohol  dis- 
solves its  tannin  and  extractive.  The  latter  may  be  oxidized, 
and  thus  rendered  insoluble  in  alcohol,  by  dissolving  the  cat- 
echue  in  water,  exposing  it  for  some  time  to  a  boiling  heat, 
and  evaporating  to  dryness.  The  tannin  of  catechue  differs 
from  that  of  galls,  in  being  soluble  in  alcohol,  and  more  solu- 
ble in  water.  It  precipitates  iron  of  an  olive  color,  and  gela- 
tin in  a  mass  which  gradually  becomes  brown. 

COCHINEAL  was  taken  in  Europe  at  first  for  a  seed,  but 
was  proved  by  the  observations  of  Lewenhoeck  to  be  an  insect, 
being  the  female  of  that  species  of  shield-louse,  or  coccus,  dis- 
covered in  Mexico,  so  long  ago  as  1518,  where  the  animal 
lives  upon  the  cactus  opuntia  or  nopal.  Two  sorts  of  cochi- 
neal are  gathered — the  wild  from  the  woods,  called  by  the 
Spanish  name  grana  silvestra ;  and  the  cultivated,  or  the 
grana  Jina,  termed  also  mesteque,  from  the  name  of  a  Mexi- 
can province.  The  first  is  smaller,  and  covered  with  a  cottony 
down,  which  increases  its  bulk  with  a  matter  useless  in  dye- 
ing ;  it  yields,  therefore,  in  equal  weight,  much  less  color,  and 
is  of  inferior  price  to  that  of  the  fine  cochineal.  But  these 
disadvantages  are  compensated  in  some  measure  to  the 
growers  by  its  being  reared  more  easily,  and  less  expensively  ; 


*  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manufactures,  &c.  vol.  I.,  p.  227. 


I 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  63 

partly  by  the  effect  of  its  down,  which  enables  it  better  to  re- 
sist rains  and  storms. 

The  wild  cochineal,  says  Berthollet,*  when  it  is  bred  upon 
the  field  nopal,  loses  in  part  the  tenacity  and  quantity  of  its 
cotton,  and  acquires  a  size  double  of  what  it  has  on  the  wild 
opuntias.  It  may,  therefore,  be  hoped  that  it  will  be  improv- 
ed by  persevering  care  in  the  rearing  of  it,  when  it  will  ap- 
proach more  and  more  to  fine  cochineal.  The  fine  cochineal, 
when  well  dried  and  well  preserved,  should  have  a  gray  color, 
bordering  on  purple.  The  gray  is  owing  to  the  powder, 
which  naturally  covers  it,  and  of  which  a  little  adheres ;  as 
also  to  a  waxy  fat.  The  purple  shade  arises  from  the  color 
extracted  by  the  water  in  which  they  were  killed.  It  is 
wrinkled  with  parallel  furrow's  across  its  back,  which  are  in- 
tersected in  the  middle  by  a  longitudinal  one ;  hence,  when 
viewed  by  a  magnifier,  or  even  a  sharp  naked  eye,  especially 
after  being  swollen  by  soaking  for  a  little  in  water,  it  is  easily 
distinguished  from  the  factitious,  smooth,  glistening,  black 
grains  of  no  value,  called  East  India  cochineal,  with  which 
it  is  often  shamefully  adulterated  by  certain  merchants. 
The  genuine  cochineal  has  the  shape  of  an  egg,  bisected 
through  its  long  axis,  or  of  a  tortoise,  being  rounded  like  a 
shield  upon  the  back,  flat  upon  the  belly,  and  without  wings. 
These  female  insects  are  gathered  off  the  leaves  of  the  nopal 
plant,  after  it  has  ripened  its  fruit,  a  few  only  being  left  for 
brood,  and  are  killed,  either  by  a  momentary  immersion  in 
boiling  water,  by  drying  upon  heated  plates,  or  in  ovens :  the 
last  become  of  an  ash-gray  color,  constituting  the  silver  cochi- 
neal, or  jaspeada  ;  the  second  are  blackish,  called  ?iegra,  and 
are  most  esteemed,  being  probably  dryest ;  the  first  are  reddish 
brown,  and  reckoned  inferior  to  the  other  two.  The  dry 
cochineal  being  sifted,  the  dust,  with  the  imperfect  insects  and 
fragments  which  pass  through,  are  sold  under  the  name  of 
granilloA 


*  Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  147. 

t  Cochineal  keeps  for  a  long  time  in  a  dry  place.  Hellot  says  that  he  has  tried 
some  130  years  old,  which  produced  the  same  effect  as  new  cochineal. — Bertholett. 
vol.  II.,  p.  149. 


64 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


M.  M.  Pelletier  and  Caventon,  have  investigated  the  chem- 
ical properties  of  cochineal,  in  which  its  coloring  matter  was 
skillfully  eliminated.  Their  principal  researches  were  directed 
to  the  mesteque  cochineal  [coccus  cacti),  though  a  few  experi- 
ments were  also  made  on  some  other  kinds.  The  following 
shows  some  of  the  results  of  their  investigation : — 

1.  Purified  sulphuric  ether  acquired  by  digestion  with  it  a 
golden  yellow  color,  amounting,  according  to  Dr.  John,  to  one- 
tenth  of  the  weight  of  the  insect.  This  infusion  left,  on  eva- 
poration, a  fatty  wax  of  the  same  color. 

2.  Cochineal,  exhausted  by  ether,  was  treated  with  alcohol 
at  40°.  After  thirty  digestions  in  the  apparatus  of  M.  Chev- 
reul,  the  cochineal  continued  to  retain  color,  although  the 
alcohol  had  ceased  to  have  any  effect  on  it.  The  first  alco- 
holic liquors  were  of  a  red  verging  on  yellow.  On  cooling, 
they  let  fall  a  granular  matter.  By  spontaneous  evaporation, 
this  matter,  of  a  fine  red  color,  separated,  assuming  more  of 
the  crystaline  appearance.  These  species  of  crystals  dis- 
solved entirely  in  water,  which  they  tinged  of  a  yellowish-red. 

3.  Treated  with  very  strong  alcohol  in  the  cold,  they  re- 
dissolved,  leaving  a  very  animalized  brownish  matter.  The 
alcoholic  solution  of  these  crystals,  when  thus  deprived  of  its 
animalized  matter,  is  still  susceptible  of  affording  the  above 
crystaline  sediment.  In  this  state,  although  free  from 
animalized  matter,  especially  when  they  have  been  redissolv- 
ed  and  recovered  anew,  these  crystals,  do  not  however,  present 
the  coloring  matter  pure,  as  was  at  first  believed. 

4.  If  this  matter  be  treated  with  sulphuric  ether,  one  por- 
tion is  dissolved  and  colors  the  ether  orange-yellow ;  and  it  is 
only  after  the  ether  has  ceased  to  have  any  action  on  the 
mass,  and  when  it  comes  off  colorless,  that  the  substance 
which  will  not  dissolve  in  the  ether  may  be  regarded  as  the 
coloring  principle,  if  not  absolutely  pure,  at  least  very  nearly 
so.  The  coloring  principle  of  cochineal,  insoluble  by  itself  in 
ether,  may,  however,  be  dissolved  in  small  quantity  in  this 
liquid  through  the  intervention  of  the  fat  crystalizable  mat- 
ter, while  the  latter  becomes  less  soluble  in  ether,  as  it  is  en- 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


65 


veloped  and  protected  by  a  quantity  proportionally  greater  of 
the  coloring  principle. 

These  considerations  led  M.  M.  Pelletier  and  Caventon  to 
make  the  following  experiment,  in  the  hope  of  stripping  the 
coloring  matter  of  every  particle  of  the  fat  substance : — 

1.  They  dissolved  a  certain  quantity  of  their  colored  crys- 
tals in  very  strong  alcohol,  and  added  a  quantity  of  sulphuric 
ether  equal  to  that  of  the  alcohol  employed.  The  mixture 
became  turbid,  but  at  the  end  of  some  days  it  had  grown  per- 
fectly clear.  It  was  of  a  red  color  inclining  considerably  to 
yellow.  A  good  deal  of  the  coloring  matter  had,  however, 
fallen  down  on  the  bottom  of  the  vessel,  forming  an  incrusta- 
tion of  a  magnificent  purple-red.  This  matter,  treated  with 
ether,  no  longer  yielded  any  principle  ;  and  the  properties  to 
be  presently  detailed  lead  to  the  belief,  that  it  may  be  regarded 
as  the  coloring  matter  of  cochineal  in  a  state  of  purity. 

2.  By  adding  new  portions  of  ether  to  the  decanted  liquor, 
a  certain  quantity  of  coloring  matter  may  again  be  thrown 
down.  The  alcoholic  tinctures  in  which  the  first  crystals 
were  formed,  were  evaporated  to  dryness  on  the  water-bath  : 
and  the  coloring  matter  obtained,  treated  by  methods  analo- 
gous to  the  preceding,  afforded  likewise  fat  crystalizable  mat- 
ter and  coloring  principle. 

Coloring  principal  of  Cochineal. — This  matter  has  a  very 
brilliant  purple-red  color  ;  it  adheres  strongly  to  the  sides  of 
the  vessels ;  it  has  a  granular  and  somewhat  crystaline  as- 
pect, very  different,  however,  from  those  compound  crystals- 
alluded  to  above  ;  it  is  not  altered  by  the  air,  nor  does  it  sen- 
sibly attract  moisture.  Exposed  to  the  action  of  heat,  it  melts 
at  about  the  fiftieth  degree  Centigrade  (122°  Fahr.)  At  a 
higher  temperature  it  swells  up,  and  is  decomposed  with  the 
production  of  carburetted  hydrogen,  much  oil,  and  a  small 
quantity  of  water,  very  slightly  acidulous.  No  trace  of  am- 
monia was  found  in  these  products. 

The  coloring  principle  of  cochineal  is  very  soluble  in  water. 
By  evaporation,  the  liquid  assumes  the  appearance  of  syrup, 
but  never  yields  crystals.  It  requires  of  this  matter  a  portion 
almost  imponderable  to  give  a  perceptible  tinge  of  bright  pur- 

9 


I 


66  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

plish  red  to  a  large  body  of  water.  Alcohol  dissolves  this  col- 
oring substance,  but,  as  we  have  already  stated,  the  more 
highly  it  is  rectified,  the  less  of  it  does  it  dissolve.  Sulphuric 
ether  does  not  dissolve  the  coloring  principle  of  cochineal,  but 
weak  acids  do,  possibly  owing  to  their  water  of  dilution.  No 
acid  precipitates  it  in  its  pure  state.  This  coloring  principle, 
however,  appears  to  be  precipitable  by  all  the  acids  when  it  is 
accompanied  by  the  animal  matter  of  the  cochineal. 

Acids,  however,  change  the  color  of  this  substance,  convert- 
ing it  into  a  bright  red,  then  a  yellowish-red,  and  lastly,  a  yel- 
low. When  the  acids  have  not  been  too  concentrated,  its 
proper  color  may  be  restored  by  saturation  with  alkali.  Chlo- 
rine changes  the  color  of  this  principle  to  yellow,  and  then  de- 
stroys it  altogether.  It  produces  no  precipitate  in  its  solution, 
unless  it  contains  animal  matter.  Hence  chlorine  becomes  a 
useful  reagent  for  trying  the  purity  of  this  coloring  substance. 
Iodine  acts  like  chlorine,  but  more  slowly.  The  alkalis, 
poured  into  a  solution  of  the  coloring  principle  of  cochineal, 
change  its  hue  to  crimson  violet.  If  the  alkali  be  immedi- 
ately saturated,  the  original  color  is  restored,  and  the  coloring 
matter  may  be  recovered  without  any  remarkable  alteration 
in  its  principal  properties.  If  the  action  of  the  alkali  has  been 
longer  continued,  or  aided  by  heat,  the  violet  shade  disappears, 
and  the  color  passes  back  to  red,  and  then  yellow.  In  this 
case,  the  coloring  matter  is  totally  altered,  for  by  putting  it 
into  contact  with  those  metallic  salts  which  form  with  it  in- 
soluble combinations,  we  obtain  precipitates  entirely  different 
from  those  which  the  pure  coloring  matter  produces  with  the 
same  salts. 

Lime  water  produces  a  violet  precipitate  with  the  coloring 
matter  of  cochineal.  Barytes  and  strontites  do  not  occasion 
any  precipitate  in  a  solution  of  the  coloring  matter  ;  but  they 
change  the  hue  to  violet,  like  alkalis.  The  affinity  of  alu- 
mina for  the  coloring  matter  is  very  remarkable.  When  that 
earth,  newly  precipitated,  is  put  into  a  watery  solution  of  the 
coloring  principle,  this  is  immediately  seized  by  the  alumina. 
The  water  becomes  colorless,  and  a  fine  red  lake  is  obtained, 
if  we  operate  at  the  temperature  of  the  atmosphere  :  but  if  the 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


67 


liquor  has  been  hot,  the  color  passes  to  crimson,  and  the  shade 
becomes  more  and  more  violet,  according  to  the  elevation  of 
the  temperature,  and  the  continuance  of  the  ebullition. 

If,  before  adding  alumina  to  the  watery  solution  of  the  col- 
oring principle,  some  drops  of  an  acid  be  poured  into  this,  the 
lake  obtained  is  at  first  of  a  brilliant  red ;  but  the  slightest 
heat  changes  it  to  a  violet  hue.  The  same  effect  is  produced 
by  putting  into  the  solution  of  the  coloring  principle  some 
grains  of  an  aluminous  salt.  But,  on  the  contrary,  if  we  add 
to  the  coloring  principle  a  small  quantity  of  alkali,  potash, 
soda,  ammonia,  or  their  subcarbonat.es,  and  if  we  then  diffuse 
through  the  solution  some  gelatinous  alumina,  the  liquor  ren- 
dered violet  by  the  alkalies  returns  instantly  to  the  red,  by  the 
formation  of  a  lake  which  readily  precipitates.  In  this  case, 
we  may  keep  the  mixture  boiling  for  a  long  time,  without 
making  the  lake  perceptibly  violet.  This  property  cannot, 
however,  be  quite  restored  by  alkaline  saturation,  especially 
if  the  action  of  the  alkali  has  been  some  time  continued. 
These  facts  may  serve  to  explain  several  phenomena  which 
have  been  observed  in  the  operations  of  the  scarlet  or  crimson 
dye. 

Most  salts  exercise  on  the  coloring  matter  of  cochineal  an 
action  characterized  by  changes  in  the  hue ;  but  only  a  small 
number  are  capable  of  precipitating  it,  when  it  is  in  a  state  of 
perfect  purity. 

Nitrate  of  silver  has  no  action  on  it.  The  soluble  neutral 
salts  of  lead  change  the  red  coloring  matter  to  violet ;  and  the 
acetate  of  lead  determines  immediately  an  abundant  precipi- 
tate. This  precipitate  keeps  its  tint,  though  there  be  an  ex- 
cess of  acetic  acid.  By  passing  a  stream  of  sulphuretted  hy- 
drogen gas  through  the  combination,  it  is  decomposed,  and  the 
coloring  matter  is  then  obtained  in  a  state  of  purity.  Proto- 
nitrate  of  mercury  produces  a  violet  precipitate  in  the  solution 
of  the  coloring  matter ;  the  deutonitrate  precipitates  less  easily 
the  coloring  matter  ;  what  falls  is  of  a  scarlet  hue.  Corrosive 
sublimate  has  no  action  on  it.  The  salts  of  copper  cause  no 
precipitate,  but  change  the  color  to  violet ;  and  the  salts  of 
iron  give  a  brownish  tint,  without  producing  any  precipitate. 


68  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

Chlorine  precipitates  the  animal  matter  of  cochineal,  but 
iodine  produces  no  sensible  effect  on  its  solution.  Potash  and 
soda  communicate  to  water  the  power  of  dissolving  this  ani- 
mal matter  in  abundance.  When  they  are  neutralized  by 
acid,  the  matter  is  recovered  ;  but  if  the  acid  is  in  excess,  it 
forms  an  insoluble  compound  with  an  animal  matter.  All 
the  salts  with  excess  of  acid  precipitate  the  animal  matter, 
and  are  brought  to  the  neutral  state. 

The  salts  of  tin  exercise  upon  the  coloring  matter  of  cochi- 
neal a  remarkable  action.  The  muriatic  protoxide  of  tin 
forms  a  very  abundant  violet  precipitate  in  the  liquid.  This 
precipitate  verges  on  crimson,  if  the  salt  contains  an  excess  of 
acid.  The  muriatic  deutoxide  of  tin  produces  no  precipitate, 
but  changes  the  color  to  scarlet-red.  If  gelatinous  alumina 
be  now  added,  we  obtain  a  fine  red  precipitate,  which  does  not 
pass  to  crimson  by  boiling.  To  this  coloring  principle  the 
name  carminium  has  been  given,  because  it  forms  the  basis 
of  the  pigment  called  carmine. — (See  Carmine.) 

By  incinerating  cochineal,  certain  salts  were  found  in  the 
residue.    Hence  the  general  products  are  as  follows  : — 

1.  Carminium.  2.  A  peculiar  animal  matter.  3.  A  fat 
matter,  containing  stearine,  elaine,  and  odorant  principle.  4. 
Salts,  phosphate  of  lime,  carbonate  of  lime,  muriate  of  pot- 
ash, phosphate  of  potash,  potash  united  to  an  organic  acid. 

The  specific  gravity  of  genuine  cochineal  is  1*25  ;  that  of 
the  cochineal  loaded  with  the  barytic  sulphate  1-35.  It  was 
taken  in  oil  of  turpentine  and  reduced  to  water  as  unity,  be- 
cause the  waxy  fat  of  the  insects  prevents  the  intimate  con- 
tact of  the  latter  liquid  with  them,  and  the  ready  expulsion 
of  air  from  their  wrinkled  surface.  They  are  not  at  all  acted 
upon  by  the  oil,  but  are  rapidly  altered  by  water,  especially 
when  they  have  been  gummed  and  barytified. 

CUDBEAR  was  first  made  an  article  of  trade,  in  Great 
Britain,  by  Dr.  Cuthbert  Gordon,  from  whom  it  derived  its 
name,  and  was  originally  manufactured  on  a  great  scale  by 
Mr.  G.  Mackintosh,  at  Glasgow,  over  65  years  ago.  Cudbear 
or  persio  is  a  powder  of  a  violet  red  color,  difficult  to  moisten 
with  water,  and  of  a  peculiar  but  not  disagreeable  odor.    It  is 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  69 

partially  soluble  in  boiling  water,  becomes  red  with  acids,  and 
violet  blue  with  alkalis.  It  is  prepared  in  the  same  way  as 
archil,  only  towards  the  end  the  substance  is  dried  in  the  air, 
and  is  then  ground  to  a  fine  powder,  taking  care  to  avoid  de- 
composition, which  renders  it  glutinous.  In  Scotland  they 
use  the  lichen  tartareus,  more  rarely  the  lichen  calcareus,  and 
omphalodes  ;  most  of  which  lichens  are  imported  from  Sweden 
and  Norway,  under  the  name  of  rock  moss.  The  lichen  is 
suffered  to  ferment  for  a  month,  and  is  then  stirred  about  to 
allow  any  stones  which  may  be  present  to  fall  to  the  bottom. 
The  red  mass  is  next  poured  into  a  flat  vessel,  and  left  to 
evaporate  till  its  urinous  smell  has  disappeared,  and  till  it  has 
assumed  an  agreeable  color  verging  upon  violet.  It  is  then 
ground  to  fine  powder.  During  the  fermentation  of  the  lichen, 
t  is  watered  with  stale  urine,  or  with  an  equivalent  ammo- 
niacal  liquor  of  any  kind,  as  in  making  archil. — (See  Archil.) 

F. 

FUSTIC,  is  a  wood  of  the  Morus  tinctoria.  It  is  light,  not 
hard,  and  pale  yellow  with  orange  veins ;  it  contains  two 
coloring  matters,  one  resinous,  and  another  soluble  in  water. 
The  latter  resembles  weld,  but  it  has  more  of  an  orange  cast, 
and  is  not  so  lively.  Fustic  is  a  very  valuable  dye-wood  for 
the  production  of  greens  on  wool  and  woolen  goods.  It  is  also 
much  used  in  the  production  of  yellows.*  A  strong  decoction 
of  this  wood  has  a  deep  yellow-red  color ;  when  diluted  with 
water,  it  becomes  orange-yellow.  The  acids  make  this  liquid 
turbid,  with  some  inconsiderable  differences ;  a  slight  greenish- 
yellow  precipitate  falls,  and  the  supernatant  liquid  is  of  a  pale 
yellow.  The  alkalies  redissolve  the  precipitate,  and  give  the 
liquor  a  deep  reddish  color.  The  following  experiments  show 
the  action  of  the  re-agents  on  the  coloring  substance  of  this 
wood : — 

1.  Alkalies  render  the  color  deeper  and  almost  red. 


*  See  Parts  III.  and  IV. 


70 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


2.  Alum  forms  a  small  quantity  of  yellow  precipitate ;  the 
liquor  remains  transparent,  and  of  a  less  deep  yellow. 

3.  Alum  and  tartar  together,  afford  a  precipitate  which  has 
the  same  color,  but  it  is  slower  in  falling.  The  liquor  retains 
a  still  deeper  hue. 

4.  The  muriale  of  soda  mafces  the  color  a  little  deeper, 
without  occasioning  turbidity. 

5.  Sulphate  of  iron  forms  a  precipitate  at  first  yellow,  but 
which  grows  more  and  more  brown ;  the  liquor  continues 
brown,  and  without  transparency. 

6.  Sulphate  of  copper  affords  an  abundant  precipitate  of  a 
brown-yellow ;  the  supernatant  liquor  retains  a  feeble  greenish 
color. 

7.  Sulphate  of  zinc  yields  a  greenish-brown  precipitate ; 
the  liquor  retains  a  reddish-yellow  color. 

8.  Acetate  of  lead  forms  an  abundant  orange-yellow  preci- 
pitate ;  the  liquor  is  transparent,  and  of  a  very  faint  greenish- 
yellow. 

9.  The  solution  of  tin  gives  a  very  copious  precipitate  of  a 
fine  yellow,  a  little  brighter  than  the  preceding ;  the  liquor 
retains  a  faint  yellow  color. 

Chaptal  recommends  to  boil  in  the  yellow  decoction  of 
fustic,  parings  of  skins,  glue,  or  other  animal  matters ;  and 
then,  without  filtering,  the  stuff  is  to  be  worked  in  it,  which 
will  thus  take  the  most  beautiful  and  intense  color.*  For  the 
best  methods  of  dyeing  yellow,  see  chapter  IV,  Part  III ;  see 
also  chapter  II.,  Part  IV.,  and  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Tin  ; 
see  also  Calico- Printing-. 

G. 

GARANCINE. — (See  Madder.) 

H. 

HEMATINE  is  the  name  given  by  its  discoverer  Chevreul 
to  a  crystaline  substance,  of  a  pale  pink  color,  and  brilliant 


*  Mem.  de  1'  Institut,  torn.  I. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


71 


lustre  when  viewed  in  a  lens,  which  he  extracted  from  log- 
wood, the  hcematoxylon  Campechianum  of  botanists.  It  is, 
in  fact,  the  characteristic  principle  of  this  dyewood.  To  pro- 
cure hematine,  digest  during  a  few  hours  ground  log-wood  in 
water  heated  to  a  temperature  of  about  130°  F.;  filter  the 
liquor,  evaporate  it  to  dryness  by  a  steam  bath,  and  put  the 
extract  in  alcohol  of  0-835  for  a  day.  Then  filter  anew,  and 
after  having  inspissated  the  alcoholic  solution  by  evaporation, 
pour  into  it  a  little  water,  evaporate  gently  again,  and  then 
let  rest  in  a  cool  place.  In  this  way  a  considerable  quan- 
tity of  crystal  of  hematine  will  be  obtained,  which  may  be 
readily  purified  by  washing  with  alcohol  and  drying.  M. 
Chevreul,  in  a  series  of  experiments  obtained  the  following 
results : — 

1.  When  subjected  to  any  distillation  in  a  retort,  hema- 
tine affords  all  the  usual  products  of  vegetable  bodies,  along 
with  a  little  ammonia  ;  which  proves  the  presence  of  azote. 

2.  Boiling  water  dissolves  it  abundantly,  and  assumes  an 
orange-red  color,  which  passes  into  yellow  by  cooling,  but  be- 
comes red  again  with  heat. 

3.  Sulphurous  acid  destroys  the  color  of  solution  of  hematine. 

4.  Potash  and  ammonia  convert  into  a  dark  purple-red 
tint,  the  pale  solution  of  hematine ;  when  these  alkalies  are 
added  in  large  quantity,  they  make  the  color  violet  blue,  then 
brown-red,  and  lastly  brown-yellow.  By  this  time,  the  hema- 
tine has  become  decomposed,  and  cannot  be  restored  to  its 
pristine  state  by  neutralizing  the  alkalies  with  acids. 

5.  The  waters  of  baryta,  strontia,  and  lime,  exercise  an 
analogous  power  of  decomposition ;  but  they  eventually  pre- 
cipitate the  changed  coloring  matter. 

6.  A  red  solution  of  hematine  subjected  to  a  current  of  sul- 
phuretted hydrogen  becomes  yellow ;  but  it  resumes  its  origi- 
nal hue  when  the  sulphuretted  hydrogen  is  removed  by  a 
little  potash. 

7.  The  protoxide  of  lead,  the  protoxide  of  tin,  the  hydrate 
of  peroxide  of  iron,  the  hydrate  of  oxides  of  copper  and 
nickel,  oxide  of  bismuth,  combine  with  hematine,  and  color  it 
blue  with  more  or  less  of  a  violet  cast. 


72 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Hematine  precipitates  glue  from  its  solution  in  reddish 
flocks.  This  substance  has  not  hitherto  been  employed  in  its 
pure  state ;  but  as  it  constitutes  the  active  principle  of  log- 
wood, it  enters  as  an  ingredient  into  all  the  colors  made  with 
that  dye-stuff.  These  colors  are  principally  violet  and  black. 
Chevreul  has  proposed  hematine  as  an  excellent  test  of 
acidity.*—  (See  Logwood.) 

i. 

INDIGO. — In  chapter  II.  we  mentioned  that,  besides  the 
green  of  leaves  and  the  colors  of  flowers,  which  we  considered 
common  to  all  vegetables,  there  were  other  coloring  matters 
which  existed  only  in  certain  kinds  of  vegetables,  and  in  par- 
ticular parts  of  the  vegetable.  Indigo  is  one  of  these :  it  be- 
longs to  a  genus  of  loguminous  plants  found  in  India,  Africa, 
and  America,  named  Indigofera.  Botanists  have  described 
about  sixty  species  of  this  genus.  These  all  yield  indigo  ;  but 
the  species  from  which  it  is  usually  extracted  are  the  /.  anil, 
the  1.  argentea,  and  the  I.  tinctoria.  It  is  also  extracted  from 
a  tree  very  common  in  Hindostan,  (the  Nerium  tinctorium  of 
botanists,)  and  from  the  woad  plant  (Isatis  tinctoria),  which  is 
a  native  of  Great  Britain,  and  of  other  parts  of  Europe.  The 
coloring  matter  of  these  plants  resides  wholly  in  the  cellular 
tissue  of  the  leaves,  as  a  secretion  or  juice ;  not,  however,  in 
the  blue  state  in  which  we  are  accustomed  to  see  indigo,  but 
as  a  white  substance,  which,  as  we  shall  presently  see,  remains 
white  so  long  as  the  tissue  of  the  leaf  remains  perfect.?  When 


*  Annales  de  Chimie,  lxxxi.  p.  128. 

t  A  blue  color,  serviceable  for  dyeing,  may  be  extracted  from  buckwheat,  in  the 
following  manner : — The  stalks  are  cut  before  the  grain  has  become  mature ;  they 
are  spread  out  upon  the  earth  and  exposed  to  the  sun ;  and  suffered  to  remain  till 
the  grain  separates  with  facility.  When  this  has  been  effected,  the  straw  is  collect- 
ed, wetted,  and  allowed  to  ferment  until  decomposition  take  place,  and  the  heap 
has  assumed  a  blue  appearance.  It  is  then  formed  into  balls  or  cakes,  and 
dried  by  the  sun,  or  in  a  stove.  These  masses  being  boiled  in  water  will  impreg- 
nate it  with  a  deep  blue,  which  neither  vinegar  nor  sulphuric  acid  will  discharge. 
Alkalis  will  change  it  to  a  red ;  the  powder  of  nut-galls  reduce  it  to  a  perfect  black ; 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


73 


this  tissue  is  by  any  means  destroyed,  the  indigo  absorbs  oxy- 
gen from  the  atmosphere,  and  becomes  blue. 

Of  the  early  history  of  indigo  little  is  known,  neither  is  it 
known  when  it  was  first  used  as  a  dye-stuff.  The  Greeks  and 
Romans  used  it  as  a  paint,  under  the  name  of  Indicum.  Its 
value,  as  a  dye-stuff,  was  not  known  in  Europe  till  nearly  the 
close  of  the  sixteenth  century,  when  it  was  imported  from 
India  by  the  Dutch ;  but  English  legislators,  for  a  long  time, 
prohibited  its  use  in  Great  Britain  under  severe  penalties. 
These  prohibitions  continued  in  force  till  the  reign  of  Charles  II., 
and  the  reason  consisted  in  its  being  considered  a  corrosive 
substance,  and  capable  of  destroying  the  fibres  of  cloth,  and 
therefore  calculated  to  injure  the  character  of  the  dyers.  This 
opinion,  no  doubt,  sprung  from  the  strong  and  interested  oppo- 
sition given  to  its  use  by  the  cultivators  of  the  woad,  which 
was  then  regarded  as  an  important  branch  of  national  indus- 
try.* 

The  plant  which  yields  the  indigo  in  Bengal  is  a  small 
straight  plant,  furnished  with  thin  branches,  which  spreads 
out  and  forms  a  sort  of  tuft ;  the  average  height  is  four  feet, 
but  on  good  ground  it  sometimes  attains  a  height  of  even 
seven  feet.  The  leaves  are  soft,  and  somewhat  like  those  of 
the  common  clover,  and  the  blossoms  are  of  a  light  reddish 

and,  by  evaporation,  it  will  become  a  beautiful  green.  Stuffs  dyed  with  this  pre- 
paration, and  by  the  usual  method,  take  the  dyes  from  other  vegetable  substances; 
the  blue  is  very  beautiful,  and  the  color  stands  well. 

*  When  Indigo  was  first  introduced,  only  a  small  quantity  was  added  to  the 
woad,  by  which  the  latter  was  much  improved ;  more  was  afterwards  gradually 
used,  and,  at  last,  the  quantity  became  so  large,  that  the  small  admixture  of  woad 
served  only  to  revive  the  fermentation  of  the  indigo.  Germany  thus  lost  a  produc- 
tion by  which  farmers,  merchants,  carriers,  and  others,  acquired  great  riches.  In 
consequence  of  the  sales  of  woad  being  so  much  injured,  a  prohibition  was  issued 
against  the  use  of  indigo  by  Saxony,  in  the  year  1650.  In  the  year  1652,  Duke 
Ernest,  the  Pious,  caused  a  proposal  to  be  made  to  the  diet  by  his  envoy,  that  in- 
digo should  be  entirely  banished  from  the  empire,  and  that  an  exclusive  privilege 
should  be  granted  to  those  who  dyed  with  woad.  This  was  followed  by  an  imperial 
prohibition  of  indigo  on  the  21st  of  April,  1654,  which  was  enforced  with  the 
greatest  severity  in  his  dominions.  The  same  was  done  in  France ;  but  in  the 
well-known  edict  of  1669,  in  which  Colbert  separated  the  superior  from  the  inferior 
dyers,  it  was  stated,  that  indigo  should  be  used  without  woad ;  and  in  1 737,  dyers 
were  left  at  liberty  to  use  indigo  alone,  or  to  employ  a  mixture  of  indigo  and  woad- 

10 


74 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


color.  The  plant  is  at  its  highest  perfection  when  in  full 
blossom,  and  yields  the  greatest  quantity  of  indigo. 

There  are  two  methods  for  extracting  the  coloring  matter 
from  the  leaves  :  the  first  is  by  fermentation  and  beating. 
This  process  is  conducted  in  two  large  brick  cisterns  or  vats, 
built  in  relation  to  one  another,  like  two  steps  of  a  stair.  The 
upper  one  is  termed  the  steeper,  because  in  it  the  fermentation 
is  conducted.  At  the  bottom  of  this  cistern  there  is  a  plug- 
hole entering  into  the  other,  through  which,  when  the  process 
of  fermentation  is  finished,  the  fluid  is  run  off  into  the  lower 
cistern,  denominated  the  beater,  because  in  it  the  process  of 
beating  the  fluid  by  paddles,  to  separate  the  feculse  from  the 
water,  is  performed.  The  plant,  when  cut,  is  tied  up  in  bun- 
dles about  five  feet  in  circumference,  and  conveyed  as  quickly 
as  possible  to  the  vat ;  for,  were  it  kept  but  a  short  time  in 
heaps,  the  indigo  in  the  plant  would  be  destroyed.  The  up- 
per vat  is  filled  to  about  five  or  six  inches  from  the  top  with 
these  bundles  laid  in  regular  tiers.  To  prevent  the  throwing 
up  of  the  herb  by  the  swelling  and  agitation  caused  by  the 
fermentation,  there  are  irons  built  in  the  two  side  walls,  oppo- 
site to  one  another,  to  which  are  fastened  beams  of  wood, 
which  traverse  the  whole  length  and  breadth  of  the  vats. 
When  the  vat  is  sufficiently  filled  with  the  vegetable,  a  strong 
grating  of  bamboo,  large  enough  to  cover  the  whole  surface, 
is  laid  over  the  plant,  and  fastened  down  by  the  cross  beams. 
These  precautions  being  completed,  cold  water  is  poured  as 
quickly  as  possible  into  the  vat,  till  the  surface  rises  within 
three  or  four  inches  of  the  upper  edges.  In  a  short  time  fer- 
mentation commences,  and  is  completed  in  from  nine  to  twelve 
hours.  Towards  the  end,  the  action  is  very  brisk,  swelling 
and  throwing  up  frothy  bubbles,  which  sometimes  rise  like 
pyramids.  These  bubbles  are  white  at  first,  but  after  a  little 
exposure  to  the  air,  they  become  blue,  and  then  purple.  This 
part  of  the  operation  requires  great  skill.  If  the  fermentation 
be  too  long,  the  indigo  will  be  much  damaged ;  and,  if  too 
short,  the  quantity  is  much  diminished.  When  the  liquor 
ceases  to  swell,  it  is  let  out  into  the  second  or  beating  vat,  and 
is  then  of  a  light  green  color. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


75 


The  liquor  being  now  into  the  lower  or  beating  vat,  a  num- 
ber of  men  enter  it,  furnished  with  oar-shaped  paddles,  about 
four  feet  in  length  ;  they  continue  to  walk  backwards  and  for- 
wards, agitating  or  beating  the  liquor  with  these  paddles.  At 
the  commencement  of  this  agitation  the  liquor  begins  to  froth  ; 
but  this  is  prevented,  provided  the  fermentation  has  not  gone 
on  too  long,  by  a  few  drops  of  oil.  In  the  course  of  an  hour 
and  a  half,  the  liquor  begins  to  granulate,  and  assume  the 
appearance  of  agitated  water,  full  of  wood  grounds.  This 
part  of  the  process  also  requires  considerable  care  and  man- 
agement ;  for,  if  the  beating  be  stopped  too  soon,  the  indigo 
will  not  be  all  separated  from  the  liquor,  occasioning  consider- 
able loss ;  if  continued  too  long,  the  granulated  particles  are 
broken,  and  dispersed  through  the  liquor,  and  do  not  readily 
fall  to  the  bottom.  When  the  beating  is  completed,  the  vat 
is  allowed  to  settle  ;  the  grains  which  constitute  the  indigo 
fall  to  the  bottom,  and  the  supernatant  liquor  is  let  off  by  plug- 
holes in  the  side  of  the  vat.  The  precipitate  is  then  removed 
to  a  copper-boiler,  to  which  there  is  a  fire  kept  till  the  liquor 
becomes  as  thick  as  oil.  Some  manufacturers  bring  it  to  this 
state  by  causing  the  liquor  to  boil ;  others  by  keeping  it  at  a 
moderate  temperature.  The  former  process  produces  lighter 
indigo  than  the  latter.  In  this  state  it  is  put  into  a  large  flat 
vessel,  furnished  at  the  one  end  with  a  cloth  filter.  After  the 
most  of  the  liquor  has  filtered  through,  the  indigo  remains  in 
the  vessel  about  the  consistence  of  butter.  It  is  then  put  on 
proper  frames,  and  subjected  to  considerable  pressure  by  a  sort 
of  screw  press  ;  and  is  now  ready  to  be  cut  into  small  cakes, 
which  are  placed  upon  boards  in  a  drying-stove ;  when  dry, 
these  cakes  are  packed  up,  and  in  this  state  form  the  indigo 
of  commerce. 

The  other  method  of  extracting  the  indigo  from  the  plant 
differs  from  that  described,  only  in  the  first  operations.  In- 
stead of  putting  the  plant  into  the  vat  when  newly  cut,  it  is 
spread  out  to  dry  in  the  sun  for  two  days,  and  then  thrashed 
to  separate  the  leaves  from  the  stems.  The  leaves  are  then 
kept  until  they  have  changed  from  a  green  to  a  bluish-gray, 
or  lavender  color  ;  they  are  then  put  into  the  first  vat  with 


76 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


warm  water,  and  kept  stirring,  till  the  leaves  are  so 
completely  wetted  as  to  sink.  The  liquor  is  then  instantly 
let  off  into  the  beating-vat,  where  it  is  treated  as  already 
described. 

The  chemical  changes  which  take  place  during  these  opera- 
tions are  not  well  understood,  and  the  various  opinions  express- 
ed by  chemists  concerning  them  are  not  very  easily  reconciled. 
Berthollet  in  his  Elements  of  Dyeing,  while  describing  the  pro- 
cess of  the  first  or  fermenting  vat,  says,  "  In  the  first  a  fermen- 
tation is  excited,  in  which  the  action  of  the  atmospheric  air 
does  not  intervene,  since  an  inflammable  gas  is  evolved. 
There  probably  results  from  it  some  change  in  the  composition 
of  the  coloring  particles  themselves,  but  especially  the  separa- 
tion or  destruction  of  a  yellowish  substance,  which  gave  to  the 
indigo  a  greenish  tint,  and  rendered  it  susceptible  of  suffering 
the  chemical  action  of  other  substances.  This  species  of 
fermentation  passes  into  a  destructive  putrefaction,  because 
the  indigo,  as  we  shall  see,  has  a  composition  analogous  to 
that  of  animal  substances." 

Dr.  Ure,  in  his  Dictionary  of  Arts  and  Manufactures, 
says,  that  from  some  experiments  made  upon  the  gases  given 
off  during  fermentation,  they  were  found  to  be  composed, 
when  taken  about  the  middle  of  the  operation,  of  27*5  of  car- 
bonic acid  gas,  5-8  of  oxygen,  and  66*7  of  nitrogen,  in  the  100 
parts ;  and  towards  the  end  of  the  operation,  they  consisted 
of  40*5  of  carbonic  acid  gas,  4*5  of  oxygen,  and  55  of  nitrogen. 
No  carburetted  hydrogen  is  disengaged.  "The  fermenting 
leaves,"  using  the  Doctor's  words,  "  apparently  convert  the 
oxygen  of  the  air  into  carbonic  acid,  and  leave  its  nitrogen 
free."  They  also  evolve  a  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  sponta- 
neously. It  will  be  observed  that  these  two  opinions  are  de- 
cidedly contradictory ;  the  one  says  that  the  action  of  the 
atmosphere  does  not  intervene,  and  that  an  inflammable  gas 
is  evolved :  the  other,  that  there  is  no  inflammable  gas  evolv- 
ed, and  that  the  air  is  apparently  the  principal  agent  in  effect- 
ing the  various  changes.  But  when  we  recollect  that  the 
leaves  are  all  under  the  liquor,  and  kept  so  by  the  fixed  posi- 
tion of  the  beams,  there  can  be  little  contact  between  the  fer- 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


77 


meriting  leaves  and  the  air;  hence  the  conversion  of  its 
oxygen  into  carbonic  acid  gas  must  be  very  limited. 

Dr.  Kane  says  of  this  process  : — "  After  some  time  a  kind 
of  mucous  fermentation  sets  in ;  carbonic  acid,  ammonia,  and 
hydrogen  gases  are  evolved,  and  a  yellow  liquor  is  obtained, 
which  holds  the  indigo  dissolved.  The  theory  of  this  action 
is,  that  by  the  putrefaction  of  the  vegeto-animal  matter  of  the 
leaves,  the  indigo  is  kept  in  the  same  white  soluble  condition 
in  which  it  exists  in  the  plant." 

Dr.  Thomson,  in  his  Vegetable  Chemistry,  supposes  that  the 
indigo  exists  in  the  plant  in  union  with  another  substance,  and 
during  fermentation  that  substance  is  decomposed,  and  carbonic 
acid  gas  consequently  evolved.  But  we  will  give  his  own 
words.  "  The  leaves  of  the  indigofera  yield  a  green  infusion 
to  hot  water,  and  a  green  powder  may  be  precipitated  from  it ; 
but  unless  a  fermentation  has  taken  place,  neither  the  color 
nor  the  properties  have  any  resemblance  to  those  of  indigo. 
There  is  little  doubt  that  in  the  leaves  it  exists  in  the  state  of 
ivhite  or  deoxygenated  indigo,  and  that  during  the  fermenta- 
tion, it  combines  with  the  requisite  quantity  of  oxygen  to  con- 
vert it  into  blue  indigo.  The  evolution  of  carbonic  acid  gas, 
renders  it  not  unlikely,  that  the  white  indigo  was  in  combina- 
tion with  some  principle  (probably  of  an  alkaline  nature)  which 
was  decomposed  during  the  fermentation." 

These  discrepancies  of  opinion,  relative  to  the  nature  of  the 
changes  which  take  place  during  fermentation,  show  that  pro- 
per investigations  have  not  yet  been  made  into  this  part  of  the 
process ;  and  it  is  obvious  that  until  this  be  done,  any  hypo- 
thesis founded  upon  statements  concerning  the  gases  evolved, 
must  be  unsatisfactory.  The  supposition  hazarded  by  Dr. 
Thomson  certainly  appears  to  us  the  most  consistent ;  for, 
as  deoxidized  indigo  combines  readily  with  alkaline  substan- 
ces, and  as  the  vegetable  alkalies  almost  always  contain  nitro- 
gen, we  can  easily  conceive  of  that  gas  being  evolved  either 
free  or  in  combination  with  hydrogen,  forming  ammonia.  It 
may  yet  be  found  that  indigo,  like  gallic  acid  (noticed  in 
chapter  II.,  Part  III.),  does  not  exist  in  the  living  vegetable, 


78 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


but  is  the  result  of  a  decomposition  of  some  more  complicated 
compound. 

The  chemical  action  which  takes  place  in  the  second  vat  in 
which  the  beating  process  is  conducted,  is  apparently  much 
more  easily  explained,  and  therefore  the  discrepancies  among 
writers  on  the  subject  are  not  so  great.  We  shall  give  only 
two  quotations.  Berthollet  says,  "  Hitherto  the  coloring  par- 
ticles have  preserved  their  liquidity.  In  the  second  operation 
the  action  of  the  air  is  brought  into  play,  which,  by  combining 
with  the  coloring  particles,  deprives  them  of  their  solubilit)^, 
and  gives  them  the  blue  color.  The  beating  serves  at  the 
same  time  to  dissipate  the  carbonic  acid  formed  in  the  first 
operation,  whose  action  is  an  obstacle  to  the  combination  of 
the  oxygen."  Dr.  Ure's  opinion  is  thus  expressed: — "The 
object  of  the  beating  is  threefold  ;  first  it  tends  to  disengage  a 
great  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  present  in  the  fermented 
liquor ;  secondly,  to  give  the  newly-developed  indigo  its  re- 
quisite dose  of  oxygen,  by  the  most  extensive  exposure  of  its 
particles  to  the  atmosphere  ;  and  thirdly,  to  agglomerate  the 
indigo  in  distinct  flocks  or  granulations.  In  order  to  hasten 
the  precipitation,  lime  water  is  occasionally  added  to  the  fer- 
mented liquor  in  the  progress  of  beating ;  but  it  is  not  indis- 
pensable, and  has  been  supposed  to  be  capable  of  deteriorating 
the  indigo." 

That  the  liquor  in  the  beating  vat  absorbs  oxygen  from  the 
air,  as  the  indigo  separates  from  it,  has,  we  believe,  been  as- 
certained by  direct  experiment ;  and  it  is  also  known  to  man- 
ufacturers, that  sunshine  assists  in  the  separation  of  the  indigo 
from  the  liquor.  But,  though  these  facts  may  have  been  as- 
certained, it  does  not  give  us  any  positive  information  respect- 
ing the  nature  of  the  change  which  takes  place  in  the  vat ; 
neither  can*we  expect  such  information  till  it  be  ascertained 
what  keeps  the  indigo  in  solution  previous  to  the  operation  of 
beating.  Both  oxygenized  and  deoxygenized  indigo  are  in- 
soluble in  water ;  there  must  therefore  be  some  substance  in 
the  liquor  capable  of  holding  the  indigo  in  solution  previous  to 
being  beat.  According  to  our  present  knowledge  of  the  na- 
ture of  white  or  deoxydized  indigo,  there  is  no  other  substance 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


79 


can  hold  it  in  solution  except  the  alkalies  and  alkaline  earths. 
But  during  such  a  generation  and  emission  of  carbonic  acid 
gas,  the  existence  of  any  alkali  capable  of  holding  the  indigo 
in  solution  in  those  vats  is  next  to  impossible,  and  the  results 
prove  the  contrary ;  for  while  the  acid  is  liberated,  the  indigo 
becomes  more  insoluble — a  result  which  is  just  the  opposite 
of  what  we  conceive  would  take  place  were  an  alkali  present ; 
except  we  suppose  that  the  carbonic  acid  is  the  result  of  the 
decomposition  of  the  alkali,  or  is  evolved,  as  already  hinted, 
from  the  decomposition  of  a  substance  which  is  resolving  it- 
self into  indigo. 

Having  given  the  opinions  of  several  chemists  upon  the 
chemical  nature  of  the  manufacture  of  indigo,  and  hinted  at 
the  difficulties  which  some  of  these  theories  involve,  we  shall 
now  consider  the  nature  of  indigo  ;  and,  whatever  be  the 
chemical  changes  which  take  place  in  the  beating  operation, 
we  are  certain  that  the  indigo  is  precipitated  in  union  with 
various  other  substances,  rendering  it  very  impure.  The 
best  indigo  of  commerce,  according  to  several  analysis,  con- 
tains only  75  per  cent,  of  pure  indigo,  while  some  of  the  infe- 
rior kinds  do  not  contain  above  29  or  30  per  cent.  Part  of 
these  impurities  may  be  dissolved  in  water,  by  alcohol,  by  di- 
lute acids,  and  by  alkaline  leys.  Berzelius  found  these  impu- 
rities to  consist,  besides  a  little  iron,  clay,  lime,  magnesia  and 
silica,  of  a  substance  resembling  vegetable  gluten,*  which  may 
be  obtained  by  digesting  indigo  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid  (vit- 
riol) ;  also  a  brown  matter  which  he  terms  indigo  brown,  and 
which  he  obtained  by  digesting  the  indigo  in  strong  potash 
ley  after  the  gluten  was  extracted.  He  found  also  a  red  resi- 
nous substance,  which  he  termed  indigo  red,  and  was  obtained 
by  boiling  the  indigo  in  alcohol,  after  digestion  in  the  acid  and 
alkali.  Several  experiments  have  been  made  upon  the  color- 
ing properties  of  these  substances,  but  the  results  have  shown 
that  they  are  incapable  of  being  used  as  a  dye.  On  the  con- 
trary, as  we  shall  afterwards  have  occasion  to  remark,  some 

*  Gluten  is  the  substance  which  gives  wheat  flour,  starch,  &c,  the  property  of 
paste.  It  is  a  distinct  vegetable  substance  composed  of  oxygen,  hydrogen,  nitro* 
gen,  and  carbon,  and  it  is  the  most  nutritive  of  all  vegetable  compounds. 


80 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  them  being  more  soluble  than  the  pure  indigo,  and  much 
more  easily  decomposed,  their  presence  is  very  hurtful  in  some 
cases  where  particular  attention  is  not  paid  to  those  properties, 
especially  when  the  indigo  is  to  be  used  as  sulphate  of  indigo. 

From  the  great  difference  in  the  quality  of  indigo,  it  would 
be  of  the  utmost  importance  to  the  dyer  to  have  an  easy 
method  of  ascertaining  its  true  value.  This  has  not  yet  been 
obtained  ;  the  various  methods  proposed  generally  imply  for- 
mal analysis,  which,  however  important  they  may  be  to  the 
dyer,  are  too  delicate  and  tedious  to  be  generally  adopted. 
The  method  universally  practised  in  the  dye-house  is,  compa- 
rison— putting  several  samples  together,  breaking  and  compa- 
ring their  clean  surfaces.  The  best  indigo  generally  is  of  the 
deepest  violet  blue,  and  the  finest  grain,  if  scratched  by  the 
nail,  presents  a  copper  hue ;  but  notwithstanding  great  care 
and  long  practice  in  thus  judging  of  the  value  of  indigo,  it 
often  happens  that  the  lot  chosen  turns  out  to  be  of  inferior 
quality,  and  is  not  known  until  it  is  in  the  vats,  and  its  price 
marked  against  the  dyer.* 

The  process  of  Berzelius,  just  alluded  to,  is  to  take  a  weighed  quantity  of  the  in- 
digo of  commerce  in  very  fine  powder,  and  digesting  it  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid, 
next  filter  and  wash  it ;  then  digest  what  remains  on  the  filter  in  strong  potash  or 
ammonia,  filter  and  wash  again ;  then  boil  the  remainder  in  strong  alcohol ;  what 
remains  is  pure  indigo,  and  by  weighing  it,  we  find  the  per  centage  of  real  indigo 
in  the  sample. 


*  Fritsche  of  St.  Petersburgh  has  communicated  to  M.  Chevreul  (L'Institut. 
460,)  a  method — an  improvement  upon  that  of  Liebig — of  separating  indigotine, 
Which  he  considers  will  serve  for  testing  the  value  of  commercial  indigo.  He  takes 
1  part  of  commercial  indigo,  and  1  part  of  grape  sugar,  and  places  them  in  a  flask 
capable  of  containing  40  parts  of  liquid.  He  fills  half  the  flask  with  hot  alcohol, 
and  then  adds  \%  parts  of  strong  liquid  caustic  soda  to  another  equal  portion  of  al- 
cohol, and  fills  up  the  flask  with  them.  The  flask  thus  filled  is  allowed  to  remain 
at  rest  till  it  becomes  clear.  The  fluid  is  then  withdrawn,  by  means  of  a  syphon, 
into  another  flask.  This  liquid  is  first  yellow,  but,  by  exposure  to  the  air,  it  changes 
to  red,  violet,  and  blue,  depositing  microscopical  crystals,  which  are  larger  in  pro- 
portion to  the  gradual  admission  of  the  oxygen  of  the  air,  and  consist  of  pure  in- 
digo. They  are  then  thrown  on  a  filter,  and  washed  rapidly  with  hot  water,  in 
order  to  remove  a  substance  produced  by  the  action  of  the  soda  on  the  sugar,  which 
is  insoluble  in  alcohol,  but  soluble  in  hot  water.  From  4  ounces  of  inferior  indigo 
of  commerce,  he  obtained,  by  the  first  infusion,  2  ounces  of  pure  indigo  blue:  a 
second  infusion  of  the  residue  gave  only  a  drachm  of  indigo. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


81 


alcohol, 

Treated  with 
muriatic  - 
acid, 


Another  process,  somewhat  similar,  was  recommended  by 
M.  Chevreul.  He  treated  the  powdered  indigo  first  with 
water,  then  with  alcohol,  and  afterwards  with  muriatic  acid. 
The  following  is  the  result  of  his  experiment,  taking  a  hun- 
dred parts  : — 

f  A  green  matter  united  to  ammonia,  ^1 
1;  Treated  with  !  A  little  deoxydized  indigo,  !  ,0 

water,       1  Extractive,  *  f 12  Parts' 

I  Gum,  J 

2.  Treated  with  (  green  matter,  J 

<  Red  resin,  V30  — 

£  A  little  indigo,  ) 

'  Red  resin,       -  6  — 

Carbonate  of  lime,  -      -      -2  — 

Red  oxide  of  iron,  -  2  — 

Alumina,           -  -      -             3  — 

4.  There  re-      i  Silica,          -  3  — 

mained,      ( Pure  indigo,      -  -      -      -    45  — 

100  — 

Although  these  processes  give  a  much  nearer  and  more 
ctitain  approximation  to  the  true  value  of  indigo  than  the  mere 
comparison  of  samples  by  the  eye,  still  they  are  not  direct 
enough,  and  require  too  much  nice  management  to  be  resorted 
to  generally  in  the  dye-house.  Those,  indeed,  who  are  most 
affected  by  a  bad  bargain,  and  ought  to  be  most  interested  in 
any  process  that  would  enable  them  to  avoid  loss,  and  who 
have  the  requisite  time  and  means  to  try  such  experiments,  do 
not  seem  impressed  with  their  importance.  Neither  are  they 
always  possessed  of  the  requisite  dexterity  of  manipulation  ; 
and  moreover,  in  general,  seem  unwilling  to  devote  half  a  day 
to  ascertain  what  they  suppose  can  be  accomplished,  at  least 
approximately,  in  an  hour's  time  by  comparison. 

The  following  method  has  been  discovered  by  Dr.  Dana,  of 
Lowell,  Mass.,  for  ascertaining  the  real  value  of  commercial 
indigo : — ■ 

The  grains  of  indigo  are  to  be  reduced  to  a  fine  powder,  and  put  into  a  small 
glass  flask,  with  two  and  a  half  ounces,  by  measure,  of  a  solution  of  carbonate  of 
soda,  of  from  30°  to  35°  of  strength  by  Twaddle's  hydrometer ;  after  boiling  for  a 
few  minutes,  8  grains  of  crystals  of  chloride  of  tin  (crystalized  red  spirits,)  are  to 
be  added,  and  the  whole  boiled  for  half  an  hour.  By  this  means  the  indigo  is  dis- 
solved, and  the  liquor  appears  of  a  yellow  color.  6  grains  of  bichromate  of  potash 
(red  chrome,)  is  dissolved  in  6  ounces  of  water ;  and,  when  the  flask  is  withdrawn 

11 


82 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


from  the  lamp,  this  solution  of  chrome  is  added,  which  precipitates  the  indigo  blue, 
along  with  a  trace  of  the  indigo  red,  leaving  the  other  ingredients  in  solution 
The  whole  is  next  to  be  poured  upon  a  double  weighed  filter,  and  the  precipitate 
washed  with  1  oz.  of  muriatic  acid  diluted  with  3  oz.  of  boiling  water,  and  after- 
wards with  hot  water,  till  nothing  but  water  returns.  Then  separate,  dry,  and 
weigh  the  filters,  and  make  a  note  of  the  weight  of  the  precipitate ;  burn  one  filter 
paper  against  the  other,  and  their  difference  in  weight  is  the  quantity  of  silica  con- 
tained in  the  indigo.  This,  deducted  from  the  weight  of  the  precipitate,  gives  the 
quantity  of  pure  indigo. 

Mr.  Walter  Crum,  who  communicated  the  above  to  the 
British  Association  in  1841,  added,  that  carbonate  of  soda,  with 
protoxide  of  tin,  dissolves  indigo,  and  forms  a  yellow  solution, 
but  so  slowly  that  he  doubts  if  all  the  10  grains  are  acted 
upon.  He  thinks  Dr.  Dana  must  mean  soda-ash,  which  con- 
tains a  notable  quantity  of  caustic  soda,  but  a  much  weaker 
solution  of  caustic  soda  would  answer  the  purpose. 

Pure  indigo,  besides  its  great  value  as  a  dye-drug,  possesses 
some  of  the  most  important  and  interesting  chemical  proper- 
ties, which  are  as  yet  not  very  well  understood.  Some  of 
these  we  shall  notice  before  entering  upon  its  practical  value. 
If  pure  indigo  be  heated  to  about  550°  Fah.  it  sublimes,  pro- 
ducing a  beautiful  transparent  vapor  of  a  reddish-violet  color, 
which  adheres  to  the  sides  of  the  vessel  in  which  it  is  sub- 
limed, or  on  the  top  of  the  cinder  which  is  left  in  long  needle- 
shaped  crystals.  Mr.  Crum,  whose  investigations  have  thrown 
great  light  upon  the  chemical  nature  and  properties  of  indigo, 
employed  for  its  sublimation  the  covers  of  two  platinum  cru- 
cibles, about  three  inches  diameter,  and  of  such  a  form  that, 
when  placed  with  their  concave  sides  inward,  they  were  about 
three-eighths  of  an  inch  distant  in  the  middle.  About  the 
centre  of  the  lower  lid  were  placed  thinly,  about  ten  grains  of 
indigo,  precipitated  from  the  dyers'  vat,  in  small  lumps  about 
a  grain  each ;  then,  having  put  on  the  cover,  the  flame  of  a 
spirit-lamp  was  applied  beneath  the  cover  containing  the  in- 
digo. The  indigo  immediately  began  to  melt  with  a  hissing 
noise,  which,  when  it  had  nearly  ceased,  the  lamp  was  with- 
drawn, and  the  whole  allowed  to  cool.  On  removing  the 
cover,  the  sublimed  indigo  was  found  planted  on  its  inner  sur- 
face, and  a  little  remained  upon  the  charred  matter,  and  was 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


83 


easily  removed.  In  this  way  he  obtained  from  18  to  20  per 
cent,  of  the  indigo  employed.* 

As  few  working  men  have  access  to  platinum  crucible  covers 
to  repeat  this  experiment,  we  state,  that  it  may  be  successfully 
repeated  by  taking  a  thin  porcelain  plate,  or  a  sheet  of  iron  or 
copper,  with  the  indigo  placed  upon  it,  and  covering  it  with  a 
pretty  large  watch-glass ;  when  the  plate  under  the  indigo  is 
heated  by  a  lamp,  the  vapors  very  soon  make  their  appear- 
ance ;  and,  towards  the  close,  the  glass  appears  black,  owing 
to  the  coating  of  indigo  which  adheres  to  its  inner  surface. 
To  obtain  pure  indigo  for  this  experiment,  the  easiest  method 
is  to  take  a  little  of  the  yellow  solution  of  the  indigo  vat. 
Adding  to  this  a  few  drops  of  muriatic  acid,  to  dissolve  the 
salts  of  lime,  the  blue  indigo  falls  to  the  bottom,  and  may 
readily  be  collected  upon  a  filter,  then  washed  and  dried.  A 
very  pretty  and  easy  method  has  been  described  by  T.  Taylor, 
Esq.,  which  is  as  follows  : — 

Any  quantity  of  indigo  is  to  be  reduced  to  powder,  and  mixed  with  about  half 
its  weight  of  plaster  of  Paris.  To  these  materials  so  much  water  is  to  be  added,  as 
will  bring  the  whole  to  a  thin  paste.  This  is  to  be  spread  evenly  upon  an  iron 
plate  to  the  depth  of  the  eighth  of  an  inch,  and  allowed  to  remain  exposed  to  the 
air,  or  to  a  gentle  heat,  until  it  is  tolerably  dry.  If  the  heat  of  a  large  spirit-lamp 
be  now  applied  to  the  under  surface  of  the  plate,  the  indigo  begins  to  smoke,  emits 
a  disgusting  odor,  and  in  a  few  minutes  is  covered  over  with  a  dense  purple- red 
vapor,  which  condenses  into  brilliant  flattened  prisms,  or  plates  of  an  intense 
copper-color,  forming  a  thick  velvety  coating  over  the  surface  immediately  exposed 
to  heat.  When  this  ceases  to  appear,  the  heat  is  of  course  to  be  withdrawn ;  and 
when  cold,  the  sublimed  crystals  may  be  readily  lifted  or  swept  off,  without  in  the 
slightest  disturbing  the  subjacent  mass.  The  operation  is  exceedingly  beautiful  to 
look  at,  is  effected  in  a  few  minutes,  and  any  quantity  of  materials  might  be  acted 
upon.  For  ultimate  analysis,  the  sublimed  indigo  must  be  previously  washed  with 
alcohol  or  ether.  The  object  of  the  plaster  is  to  prevent  the  indigo  from  cracking 
during  drying.t 

Pure  indigo,  whether  obtained  by  sublimation,  or  other  che- 
mical means,  is  of  a  deep  blue,  approaching  to  violet.  If 
scratched  or  rubbed,  it  has  a  strong  copper  hue,  and  a  metal- 
lic lustre.  It  has  neither  taste  nor  smell,  and  is  remarkable 
for  its  neutral  properties.    It  is  insoluble  in  water,  alcohol, 


*  Annals  of  Philosophy. 


t  Chemical  Gazette. 


84 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ether,*  alkalis,  and  dilute  acids.  Its  chemical  composition  is 
6  atoms  carbon,  5  hydrogen,  1  nitrogen,  and  2  oxygen. 

If  indigo  be  thrown  into  fused  hydrate  of  potash,  its  blue 
color  disappears  :  it  dissolves,  and  is  partly  decomposed  along 
with  the  water  of  the  alkaline  hydrate ;  hydrogen,  and  am- 
moniacal  gases  are  evolved,  while  carbonic  acid,  and  another 
acid  named  valerianic  acid,  having  properties  similar  to  acetic 
acid,  are  formed,  and  combine  with  the  potash.  By  digesting 
this  mixture  with  a  little  sulphuric  acid,  the  alkali  combines 
with  it,  and  the  new  acid  crystalizes.  This  acid,  combined 
with  alkalis,  and  other  bases,  forms  a  very  interesting  series 
of  salts. 

If  indigo,  in  fine  powder,  be  added  to  nitric  acid,  diluted 
with  seven  or  eight  times  its  weight  of  water,  and  a  gentle 
heat  be  applied,  it  dissolves  with  effervescence,  forming  a  yel- 
low liquid.  After  standing  a  little,  this  liquid  may  be  decanted 
from  any  resinous  matter  found  during  the  process,  and  con- 


*  M.  Vogel,  a  French  chemist,  remarks  that  when  the  vapor  of  ether  is  passed 
into  a  solution  of  indigo  in  sulphuric  acid  largely  diluted  with  water,  it  becomes 
decolorated.  This  effect,  he  says,  is  produced  more  readily  when  the  ether  is  heat- 
ed to  ebullition  in  a  matrass  furnished  with  a  bent  tube,  which  is  immersed  in  the 
solution  of  indigo,  and  if  the  matrass  be  suddenly  cooled,  so  that  the  solution  of 
indigo  rises  in  the  tube,  and  passes  into  the  matrass  by  the  pressure  of  the  air. 
When  he  attempted,  on  another  occasion,  to  decolorate  indigo  by  means  of  ether 
which  had  been  rectified  over  potash,  he  could  not  so  readily  effect  it,  which  indu- 
ced him  to  believe  that  the  impure  ether,  which  contained  sweet  oil  of  wine,  or  pro- 
bably aldehyd,  was  more  fit  for  the  decoloration  of  indigo  than  pure  ether.  To 
satisfy  himself,  he  added  to  a  solution  of  indigo  in  a  bottle  a  few  drops  of  aldehyd, 
and  he  observed  that  the  liquor — at  first  of  an  emerald  green  color — became  of  a 
pale  green,  and  after  some  days  became  of  a  yellowish  brown.  As  to  the  aldehyd 
which  he  employed,  it  contained  alcohol,  not  having  been  rectified ;  he  afterwards 
made  use  of  pure  aldehyd,  which  was  separated  from  its  crystaline  combination 
by  ammonia :  a  few  drops  of  this  pure  aldehyd  were  sufficient  to  destroy  the  blue 
color  of  indigo  in  a  very  short  time,  the  solution  becoming  of  a  straw  yellow. 
When  the  aldehyd  was  evaporated  by  heat,  the  blue  color  could  not  be  made  to  re- 
appear. The  addition  of  potash,  and  of  red  oxide  of  mercury,  were  not  capable 
of  restoring  the  blue  color.  On  evaporating  the  decolorated  liquor  there  remained 
a  brown  substance  analogous  to  ulmin.  This  decoloration  of  indigo  by  aldehyd  oc- 
curs only  when  the  indigo  is  dissolved  in  sulphuric  acid.  Indigo  in  fine  powder, 
diffused  through  water,  undergoes  no  change  by  aldehyd :  neither  the  tincture  of 
litmus,  nor  the  spirituous  tinctures  of  cochineal  or  turmeric,  are  decolorated  by  al- 
dehyd. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


85 


centrated  by  evaporation ;  and  speedily  there  will  be  found 
deposited  a  quantity  of  yellowish-white  crystals,  having  a 
sourish-bitter  taste,  and  requiring  about  100  parts  of  cold  water 
for  their  solution.  This  was  formerly  termed  indigotic  acid, 
but  is  now  called  anilic  acid,  from  the  species  and  name  of 
one  of  the  plants  which  yield  indigo.  It  combines  with  all 
known  bases,  forming  salts,  which  have  generally  a  yellow 
color.  It  gives  a  blood-red  color  to  solutions  of  the  persalts 
of  iron. 

If  indigo  be  added  to  strong  nitric  acid,  and  heat  be  applied, 
it  quickly  dissolves,  evolving  a  great  quantity  of  nitrous  gas. 
On  allowing  the  liquid  to  cool,  a  large  quantity  of  semitrans- 
parent  yellow  crystals  are  formed,  having  a  very  bitter  taste. 
This  is  what  was,  till  lately,  called  carbazotic  acid  ;  but  this 
name  has  been  changed  to  picric  acid. 

To  obtain  it  in  a  purer  state,  the  crystals  obtained  by  the 
above  operation  are  to  be  washed  in  cold  water,  and  then 
boiled  in  water  sufficient  to  dissolve  them  ;  next  filtering  the 
liquid  and  allowing  it  to  cool.  The  acid  again  crystalizes  in 
yellow  brilliant  prisms.  This  acid  may  also  be  obtained  by 
the  action  of  nitric  acid  upon  anilic  acid. 

Picric  acid  is  very  permanent  in  its  constitution.  When 
fused  in  chlorine  or  with  iod;ne,  it  is  not  decomposed,  nor  does 
a  solution  of  chlorine  affect  it.  Cold  sulphuric  acid  has  no 
action  upon  it,  but  dissolves  it  when  hot.  Boiling  hydrochlo- 
ric acid  does  not  act  upon  it,  but  nitro-muriatic  acid  (aqua 
regia)  dissolves  it  with  difficulty.  It  acts  like  a  strong  acid 
upon  metallic  oxides,  dissolving  them,  and  forming  peculiar 
irystalizable  salts.  Its  salts  are  yellow ;  they  detonate 
strongly  when  sharply  heated,  and  sometimes  by  a  blow,  par- 
ticularly the  potash  salt.  When  a  little  of  it  is  gradually 
heated  in  a  glass  tube,  it  first  fuses,  and  then  suddenly  ex- 
plodes, breaking  the  tube  to  pieces.  Care  is  necessary  in 
making  this  experiment,  as  the  fragments  of  glass  may  injure 
the  face. 

This  acid  is  an  excellent  test  for  the  presence  of  potash  in 
any  fluid.  A  solution  of  it  in  alcohol  produces  a  bright  yel- 
low crystaline  precipitate,  even  in  a  diluted  solution  of  the 


86 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


alkali.  It  is  thus  more  sensible  than  the  chloride  of  platinum, 
commonly  employed  for  the  detection  of  potash  ;  for  that 
reagent  does  not  produce  a  precipitate  in  dilute  solutions  of 
that  alkali. 

When  indigo  is  acted  upon  by  very  diluted  fuming  nitric 
acid,  it  unites  with  two  atoms  more  of  oxygen,  and  is  conse- 
quently converted  into  a  new  substance,  which  has  received 
the  name  of  isatine.  This  substance  under  the  influence  of 
alkalis,  absorbs  one  equivalent  more  of  water,  and  assumes 
an  acid  character,  and  is  termed  isatinic  acid.  This  acid 
combines  with  other  substances,  forming  a  series  of  com- 
pounds, the  nature  of  which  is  not  yet  very  well  known. 
Chromic  acid  has  a  similar  action  upon  indigo  as  nitric  acid. 

When  indigo  in  the  dry  state  is  brought  into  contact  with 
dry  chlorine,  no  chemical  action  is  observed  ;  but  when  indi- 
go suspended  in  water  is  subjected  to  the  action  of  chlorine, 
several  new  products  are  formed.  When  the  fluid  thus  acted 
upon  is  distilled,  a  fluid  product  in  minute  quantity  passes 
over  with  the  distilled  water,  and  collects  under  it  in  the  re- 
ceiver, in  the  form  of  white  scales  which  has  been  termed 
chlorindoptin.  It  is  sparingly  soluble  in  water,  but  copiously 
in  alcohol.  The  substance  which  remains  in  the  retort  is 
found  to  be  a  mixture  of  several  new  products.  On  being 
dissolved  in  boiling  alcohol,  it  yields  on  cooling,  red  prismatic 
crystals  of  a  bitter  taste,  and  very  insoluble  in  water ;  this 
has  been  named  chlorisatin.  It  dissolves  in  a  solution  of 
caustic  potash,  producing  a  red  color.  The  salts  of  lead  give 
with  this  solution  a  yellow  precipitate,  which  becomes  a  fine 
scarlet  by  standing.  The  salts  of  copper,  (bluestone,  &c.,) 
give  a  brown,  which  becomes  blood-red  by  exposure  to  the 
air. 

In  the  alcoholic  solution  another  substance  is  found,  having 
an  equivalent  more  of  chlorine  than  that  named  above  ;  this 
is  termed  bichlorisatin.  Its  properties,  however,  are  analo- 
gous to  those  of  chlorisatin  ;  its  solution  in  potash  gives  a  yel- 
low precipitate  with  the  salts  of  lead,  but  does  not  alter  by 
exposure  to  the  air ;  and  with  the  copper  salts  it  gives  a  yel- 
lowish brown,  which  passes  to  blood  red. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


87 


When  chlorine  is  passed  through  a  solution  of  chlorisatin, 
another  substance  named  chloronile  is  formed.  This  crystal- 
izes  in  scales  of  a  brass  yellow  color,  and,  when  dissolved  by 
potash,  gives  a  beautiful  purple  color. 

If  indigo  in  powder  be  added  to  a  solution  of  caustic  pot- 
ash, of  specific  gravity  1*35 ;  (7  Twaddell,)  and  boiled,  an 
orange  yellow  salt  is  formed.  The  solution  of  the  boiled 
mass  becomes  blue  in  the  air  from  absorption  of  oxygen,  like 
a  solution  of  white  indigo,  and  blue  indigo  precipitates. 

Besides  the  compounds  resulting  from  the  action  of  nitric 
acid  and  chlorine  upon  indigo,  there  are  several  others  which 
from  their  true  characters  being  still  little  known,  we  have  not 
thought  it  necessary  to  enumerate.  Some  practical  dyer  may 
indeed  be  inclined  to  ask,  what  those  already  noticed  have 
to  do  with  dyeing  ?  We  are  sorry  that  with  respect  to  some 
of  them,  we  cannot  give  any  satisfactory  answer  to  the  ques- 
tion ;  but  the  same  question  was  asked,  when  chemists  first 
intimated  that  chromic  acid  produced  yellow  salts  when  com- 
bined with  lead  ;  yet  this  simple  hint  has  completely  revolu- 
tionized various  departments  of  dyeing,  as  we  shall  have 
occasion  to  notice  when  we  come  to  treat  of  the  mineral 
coloring  matters  in  next  chapter ;  and  the  action  of  chromic 
acid  upon  indigo,  as  already  observed,  has  been  both  a  source 
of  annoyance  and  advantage  to  the  dyer.  Previous  to  the 
use  of  alkaline  substances  with  the  salts  of  lead,  dyers  sel- 
dom could  get  an  evenly  chrome  green ;  the  chromic  acid 
being  set  at  liberty  acted  upon  the  indigo  which  was  upon  the 
yarn,  destroying  in  part  the  blue  color,  after  which  the  green 
was  all  light  yellow  blotches.  These  annoyances  are  still 
felt  where  the  new  process  of  working  the  lead  solution  with 
an  alkali  is  not  practised.  But  this  same  action  of  chromic 
acid  upon  indigo  has  been  taken  advantage  of  by  calico 
printers,  when  they  want  a  white  pattern  on  a  blue  ground. 
The  pattern  is  printed  upon  the  cloth  with  the  oxide  of  a 
metal  which  yields  its  oxygen  easily  to  other  substances,  such 
as  copper  and  zinc  ;  the  goods  are  afterwards  dyed  blue  by 
passing  them  through  the  vat ;  but  the  parts  upon  which 
these  metallic  salts  are  printed,  resist  the  dye,  by  a  process 


88 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


which  will  be  presently  described,  so  that  the  piece,  when 
finished,  is  a  blue  ground  with  a  white  pattern.  But  after 
the  blue  vats  have  been  wrought  for  some  time,  they  cannot 
be  used  for  this  purpose,  owing  to  the  weakness  of  the  indigo, 
and  consequently  the  length  of  time  necessary  to  keep  in  the 
goods  to  produce  the  required  shade.  So  that  these  resist 
pastes  are  in  a  manner  washed  off,  and  the  pattern  spoiled. 
Now,  in  place  of  throwing  out  as  useless,  vats  thus  exhausted, 
as  was  formerly  done,  the  cloth  is  dyed  blue  without  resists, 
and  after  being  slightly  scoured  and  washed,  they  are  passed 
through  a  strong  solution  of  chromate  of  potash,  and  dried  in 
the  shade ;  the  required  pattern  is  then  printed  on  the  cloth 
with  a  mixture  of  oxalic  and  tartaric  acids  (see  Acids)  made 
into  a  paste  by  gum  or  clay.  The  potash  in  union  with  the 
chromic  acid  is  taken  up  by  these  acids,  and  the  chromic 
acid  being  set  at  liberty,  acts  on  the  indigo,  and  a  white  pat- 
tern is  produced.  This  ingenious  process  was  discovered  by 
a  German  chemist. 

The  following  table  exhibits  the  composition  of  those  sub- 
stances which  we  have  briefly  described  as  resulting  from  the 
action  of  nitric  acid  and  chlorine  upon  indigo.  It  may  be  re- 
quired for  reference : — 


a 

S3 

a 

o> 

6 

a 

Name. 

§ 
* 

2 

0) 
fcJO 

§ 

•s 

o 

O 

X 
O 

O 

Indigo,*  - 

16 

5 

2 

1 

0 

0 

Isatine,  - 

16 

5 

4 

1 

0 

0 

Isatinic  acid, 

16 

5 

4 

1 

0 

1 

Anilic,  or  indigotic  acid, 

14 

4 

9 

1 

0 

1 

Picric,  or  carbazotic,  acid, 

12 

2 

13 

3 

0 

1 

Chlorindoptin, 

16 

4 

2 

0 

4 

0 

Chlorisatin, 

16 

4 

3 

1 

1 

0 

Bichlorisatin, 

16 

4 

3 

1 

2 

0 

Chloranile, 

6 

0 

2 

0 

2 

0 

Valerianic,  - 

10 

9 

3 

0 

0 

1 

*  See  chapter  V,  Part  III.,  and  chapter  III.,  Part  IV. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


89 


K. 

KERMES  are  the  dried  bodies  of  the  female  insects  of  the 
species  coccus  iliets,  which  lives  upon  the  leaves  of  the  quer- 
cus  ilex  (prickly  oak).  The  word  kermes  is  Arabic,  and  sig- 
nifies little  worm.*  In  the  middle  ages,  this  dye  stuff  was 
therefore  called  vermicidus  in  Latin,  and  vermilion  in  French. 
It  is  curious  to  consider  how  the  name  vermilion  has  since 
been  transferred  to  red  sulphuret  of  mercury.f 

The  principal  varieties  of  kermes  are  the  coccus  quercus. 
the  coccus  polonicus,  the  coccus  fragarice,  and  the  coccus  uva 
ursi.  The  coccus  quercus  insect  lives  in  the  south  of  Europe 
upon  the  kermes  oak.  The  female  has  no  wings,  is  of  the 
size  of  a  small  pea,  of  a  brownish-red  color,  and  is  covered 
with  a  whitish  dust.  From  the  middle  of  May  to  the  middle 
of  June  the  eggs  are  collected,  and  exposed  to  the  vapor  of 
vinegar,  to  prevent  their  incubation.  A  portion  of  eggs  is  left 
upon  the  tree  for  the  maintenance  of  the  brood.  In  the  de- 
partment of  the  Bouches-du-Rhone,  one  half  of  the  kermes 
crop  is  dried.  It  amounts  annually  to  about  80  quintals  or 
cwts.  and  is  warehoused  at  Avignon. 

The  kermes  of  Poland,  or  coccus  polonicus,  is  found  upon 
the  roots  of  the  scleranthus  perennis  and  the  scleranthus  an- 
nuus,  in  sandy  soils  of  that  country  and  the  Ukraine.  This 
species  has  the  same  properties  as  the  preceding  ;  one  pound 
of  it,  according  to  Wolfe,  being  capable  of  dyeing  10  pounds 
of  wool ;  but  Hermstaedt  could  not  obtain  a  fine  color,  al- 
though he  employed  five  times  as  much  of  it  as  of  cochineal. 
The  Turks,  Armenians,  and  Cossacks,  dye  with  kermes  their 
morocco  leather,  cloth,  silk,  as  well  as  the  manes  and  tails  of 

*  The  first  person  who  spoke  of  kermes,  with  tolerable  accuracy,  was  Pierre  de 
Quiqueran,  Bishop  of  Senez,  in  1550,  de  laudibus  provincice.  The  history  of  this 
insect  is  found  in  a  memoir  of  Nissole,  Acad,  des  Sciences,  1714;  and  particularly 
in  Reaumur's  Memoires  pour  servir  d  VHistoire  des  Insectes,  torn.  IV. 

t  Kermes  mineral,  may  be  obtained  perfectly  pure,  by  diluting  the  proto-chloride 
of  antimony  with  solution  of  tartaric  acid,  and  precipitating  the  metal  with  sul- 
phurreted  hydrogen ;  or  by  exposing  the  finely  levigated  native  sulphuret  to  a  boil- 
ing solution  of  carbonate  of  potash  for  some  time,  and  filtering  the  liquor  while  boil- 
ing hot.    The  kermes  falls  down  in  a  brown-red  powder,  as  the  liquor  cools. 

12 


90 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


their  horses.  The  kermes  called  coccus  fragaria,  is  founu 
principally  in  Siberia,  upon  the  root  of  the  common  strawberry. 
The  coccus  uva  ursi  is  twice  the  size  of  the  Polish  kermes, 
and  dyes  with  alum  a  fine  red.  It  occurs  in  Russia.  Kermes 
is  found  not  only  upon  the  lycopodium  complanatum  in  the 
Ukraine,  but  upon  a  great  many  other  plants. 

Good  kermes  is  plump,  of  a  deep  red  color,  of  an  agreeable 
smell,  and  a  rough  and  pungent  taste.  Its  coloring  matter  is 
soluble  in  water  and  alcohol : 

Acids   Yellowish  brown. 

Alkalis   Violet  or  Crimson. 

Alum   Blood-red. 

Copperas  and  Tartar       .       .  Lively  gray. 

Sulphate  of  copper  and  Tartar  .  Olive  green. 

Tartar  and  Salt  of  Tin     .       .  Lively  cinnamon  yellow. 

Alum  and  Tartar     .       .       .  Lilac. 

Sulphate  of  zinc*  and  Tartar    .  Violet. 

Copperas   Blackens  it. 

Scarlet  and  crimson  dyed  with  kermes,  were  called  grain 
colors  ;  and  they  are  reckoned  to  be  more  durable  than  those 
of  cochineal,  as  is  proved  by  the  brilliancy  of  the  old  Brussels 
tapestry.  Hellot  says  that  previous  to  dyeing  in  the  kermes 
bath,  he  threw  a  handful  of  wool  into  it,  in  order  to  extract  a 
blackish  matter,  which  would  have  tarnished  the  color.  The 
red  caps  for  the  Levant  are  dyed  at  Orleans  with  equal  parts 
of  kermes  and  madder ;  and  occasionally  with  the  addition  of 
some  Brazil-wood.  Cochineal  and  lac-dye  have  now  nearly 
superseded  the  use  of  kermes  as  a  tinctorial  substance. 

On  applying  to  these  insects  the  processes  employed  by  M. 
M.  Pelletier  and  Caventon  in  the  analysis  of  cochineal,  M. 
Lassaigne  obtained  analogous  results.  It  hence  appears,  that 
kermes  has  a  chemical  composition,  very  analogous  to  that  of 
cochineal.f 

Kermes  has  been  known  in  the  East  since  the  days  of  Mo- 

*  White  Vitriol.  An  explanation  of  all  these  terms  will  be  found  in  the  Ap- 
pendix. 

t  Annales  de  Chimic  et  Physique,  XII.  102. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


91 


ses :  it  has  been  employed  from  time  immemorial  in  India  to 
dye  silk ;  and  was  used  also  by  the  ancient  Greek  and  Roman 
dyers.  Pliny  speaks  of  it  under  the  name  of  coccigranum, 
and  says  that  there  grew  upon  the  oak  in  Africa,  Sicily,  &c, 
a  small  excrescence  like  a  bud,  called  cusculium ;  that  the 
Spaniards  paid  with  these  grains,  half  of  their  tribute  to  the 
Romans  ;  that  those  produced  in  Sicily  were  the  worst ;  that 
they  served  to  dye  purple  ;  and  that  those  from  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Emerita  in  Lusitania  (Portugal)  were  the  best. 

L. 

LAC,  LAC-DYE. — Stick-lac  is  produced  by  the  puncture 
of  a  peculiar  female  insect,  called  coccus  lacca  or  Jicus,  upon 
the  branches  of  several  plants;  as  the  Jicus  religiosa,  the 
Jicus  indica,  the  rhamnus  jujuba,  the  croton  lacciferum. 
and  the  butea  frondosa,  which  grow  in  Siam,  Assam,  Pegu, 
Bengal,  and  Malabar.*  The  twig  becomes  thereby  incrusted 
with  a  reddish  mammelated  resin  having  a  crystaline-looking 
fracture.  The  female  lac  insect  is  of  the  size  of  a  louse  ;  red, 
round,  flat,  with  12  abdominal  circles,  a  bifurcated  tail,  an- 
tennae, and  6  claws,  half  the  length  of  the  body.  The  male 
is  twice  the  above  size,  and  has  4  wings :  there  is  one  of  them 
to  5000  females.  In  November  or  December  the  young  brood 
makes  its  escape  from  the  eggs,  lying  beneath  the  dead  body 
of  the  mother  ;  they  crawl  about  a  little  way,  and  fasten 
themselves  to  the  bark  of  the  shrubs.  About  this  period  the 
branches  often  swarm  to  such  a  degree  with  this  vermin,  that 
they  seem  covered  with  a  red  dust ;  in  this  case,  they  are  apt 
to  dry  up,  by  being  exhausted  of  their  juices.  Many  of  these 
insects,  however,  become  the  prey  of  others,  or  are  carried  off 
by  the  feet  of  birds,  to  which  they  attach  themselves,  and  are 
transplanted  to  other  trees.  They  soon  produce  small  nipple- 
like incrustations  upon  the  twigs,  their  bodies  being  apparently 
glued,  by  means  of  a  transparent  liquor,  which  goes  on  in- 

*  Kerr  and  Roxburgh  have  described  this  insect  in  the  Philosophical  Transac- 
tions, 1781,  1791.  Geoffrey  also  has  given  some  Interesting  observations  upon  the 
subject,  but  which  are  not  applicable  here,  in  Mem.  de  V Academie,  1714. 


92 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


creasing  to  the  end  of  March,  so  as  to  form  a  cellular  texture. 
At  this  time,  the  animal  resembles  a  small  oval  bag,  without 
life,  of  the  size  of  cochineal.  At  the  commencement,  a  beau- 
tiful red  liquor  only  is  perceived,  afterwards  eggs  make  their 
appearance  ;  and  in  October  or  November,  when  the  red  liquor 
gets  exhausted,  20  or  30  young  ones  bore  a  hole  through  the 
back  of  their  mother,  and  come  forth.  The  empty  cells  re- 
main upon  the  branches.  These  are  composed  of  the  milky 
juice  of  the  plant,  which  serves  as  nourishment  to  the  insects, 
and  which  is  afterwards  transformed  or  elaborated  into  the  red 
coloring  matter  that  is  found  mixed  with  the  resin,  but  in 
greater  quantity  in  the  bodies  of  the  insects,  in  their  eggs,  and 
still  more  copiously  in  the  red  liquor  secreted  for  feeding  the 
young.  After  the  brood  escapes,  the  cells  contain  much  less 
coloring  matter.  On  this  account,  the  branches  should  be 
broken  off  before  this  happens,  and  dried  in  the  sun.  In  the 
East  Indies  this  operation  is  performed  twice  in  the  year  ;  the 
first  time  in  March,  the  second  in  October.  The  twigs  in- 
crusted  with  the  radiated  cellular  substance  constitute  the 
stick-lac  of  commerce.  It  is  of  a  red  color,  more  or  less  deep, 
nearly  transparent,  and  hard,  with  a  brilliant  conchoidal  frac- 
ture. The  stick-lac  of  Siam  is  the  best.  The  stick-lac  of 
Assam  ranks  next ;  and  last  that  of  Bengal,  in  which  the  resi- 
nous coat  is  scanty,  thin,  and  irregular.  According  to  the  an- 
alysis of  Dr.  John,  stick-lac  consists,  in  120  parts,  as  follows  : — 

1.  An  odorous  common  resin      ....  80.00 

2.  A  resin  insoluble  in  ether       ....  20.00 

3.  Coloring  matter  analogous  to  that  of  cochineal  4.50 

4.  Bitter  balsamic  matter   3.00 

5.  Dun  yellow  extract   0.50 

6.  Acid  of  the  stick-lac  (laccic  acid)    .       .       .  0.75 

7.  Fatty  matter  like  wax   3.00 

8.  Skin  of  the  insects  and  coloring  matter  .       .  2.50 


9.  Salts 

10.  Earths 

11.  Loss 


1.25 
0.75 
4.75 


120.00 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


93 


Mr.  Hatchett,  in  a  memoir  on  lac,  published  in  the  Philo- 
sophical Transactions,  for  1804,  states  the  composition  of 
stick-lac*  to  be,  Coloring  extract,  20  ;  Resin,  136  ;  Vegetable 
gluten,  11  :  Wax,  with  a  little  coloring  extract,  12  ;  Extra- 
neous substances,  13.  200  grains  of  seed-lac  yielded  him 
only  5  of  coloring  matter  ;  and  500  of  shellac,  only  2*5. 
Mr.  Hatchett  in  that  memoir  states,  that  the  coloring  extract 
of  lac  is  insoluble  in  ether,  scarcely  soluble  in  alcohol,  and 
slightly  so  in  water,  but  readily  in  sulphuric  acid,  forming  a 
deep  brownish-red  solution,  which  being  diluted  with  water, 
and  saturated  with  potash,  soda,  or  ammonia,  becomes  changed 
to  a  deep  reddish  purple.  Strong  acetic  acid  dissolves  it  with 
great  ease,  and  forms  a  deep  brownish-red  solution.  The 
lixivia  of  potash,  soda,  and  ammonia,  act  powerfully  on  this 
substance,  and  almost  immediately  form  perfect  solutions,  of 
a  beautiful  deep  purple  color.  Pure  alumina  put  into  the 
aqueous  solution  does  not  immediately  produce  any  effect ; 
but  upon  the  addition  of  a  few  drops  of  muriatic  acid,  the 
coloring  matter  speedily  combines  with  the  alumina,  and  a 
beautiful  lake  is  formed.  Mr.  Bancroft  states,  that  muriatic 
acid  does  not  answer  so  well  as  sulphuric,  in  preparing  the 
lac  dye. 

Muriate  of  tin,  says  Mr.  Hatchett,  produces  a  fine  crimson 
precipitate,  when  added  to  the  aqueous  solution.  A  similar 
colored  precipitate  is  also  formed  by  the  addition  of  solution 
of  isinglass.  Probably  the  tannin  thus  indicated  was  afforded 
by  the  small  portions  of  vegetable  bodies,  from  which  the 
stick-lac  can  seldom  be  completely  separated. t 

Seed-lac— When  the  resinous  concretion  is  taken  off  the 


*  According  to  Franke,  the  constituents  of  stick-lac  are,  resin,  65-7;  substance 
of  the  lac,  28  3;  coloring  matter,  0  6. 

t  Twenty  grains  of  borax,  dissolved  in  4  ounces  of  water,  form  a  liquid  capable 
of  dissolving  100  grains  of  shellac.  This  solution  of  lac  in  water,  mixed  with 
various  colors,  as  vermilion,  fine  lake,  indigo,  Prussian  blue,  sap-green,  or  gam- 
boge, forms  an  excellent  vehicle  for  their  application  to  paper,  since,  when  it  dries, 
the  color  cannot  be  removed  with  a  moistened  sponge.  The  Indians  make  an  ink 
by  mixing  the  above  vehicle  with  lamp-black. — Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II., 
p.  416. 


94 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


twigs,  coarsely  pounded,  and  triturated  with  water  in  a  mor- 
tar, the  greater  part  of  the  coloring  matter  is  dissolved,  and 
the  granular  portion  which  remains,  being  dried  in  the  sun, 
constitutes  seed-lac.  It  contains  of  course  less  coloring  mat- 
ter than  the  stick-lac,  and  is  much  less  soluble.  John  found 
in  100  parts  of  it,  resin,  66*7  ;  wax,  1-7 ;  matter  of  the  lac, 
16*7  ;  bitter  balsamic  matter,  2-5  ;  coloring  matter,  3-9  ;  dun 
yellow  extract,  0*4  ;  envelopes  of  insects,  21 ;  laccic  acid,  0-0 ; 
salts  of  potash  and  lime,  1*0  ;  earths,  6-6  ;  loss,  4-2. 

In  India  the  seed-lac  is  put  into  oblong  bags  of  cotton  cloth, 
which  are  held  over  a  charcoal  fire  by  a  man  at  each  end, 
and,  as  soon  as  it  begins  to  melt,  the  bag  is  twisted  so  as  to 
strain  the  liquefied  resin  through  its  substance,  and  to  make 
it  drop  upon  smooth  stems  of  the  banyan  tree  (musa  para- 
disa).  In  this  way,  the  resin  spreads  into  thin  plates,  and 
constitutes  the  substance  known  in  commerce  by  the  name 
of  shellac. 

The  Pegu  stick-lac,  being  very  dark-colored,  furnishes  a 
shellac  of  a  corresponding  deep  hue,  and  therefore  of  inferior 
value.  The  palest  and  finest  shellac  is  brought  from  the 
northern  Circar.  It  contains  very  little  coloring  matter.  A 
stick-lac  of  an  intermediate  kind  comes  from  the  Mysore 
country,  which  yields  a  brilliant  lac-dye  and  a  good  shellac. 

Lac-dye  is  the  watery  infusion  of  the  ground  stick-lac, 
evaporated  to  dryness,  and  formed  into  cakes  about  two  inches 
square  and  half  an  inch  thick.  Dr.  John  found  it  to  consist 
of  coloring  matter,  50  ;  resin,  25  ;  and  solid  matter,  composed 
of  alumina,  plaster,  chalk  and  sand,  22. 

Dr.  Macleod,  of  Madras,  says,  that  he  prepared  a  very  su- 
perior lac-dye  from  stick-lac,  by  digesting  it  in  the  cold  in  a 
slightly  alkaline  decoction  of  the  dried  leaves  of  the  Meme- 
cylon  tinctorium,  (perhaps  the  M.  capilellatum,  from  which 
the  natives  of  Malabar  and  Ceylon  obtain  a  safTron-yellow 
dye).  This  solution  being  used  along  with  a  mordant,  con- 
sisting of  a  saturated  solution  of  tin  in  muriatic  acid,  was 
found  to  dye  woolen  cloth  of  a  very  brillint  scarlet  hue. — 
(See  chapter  I.  Part  IV.) 

LAKES. — Under  this  title  are  comprised  all  those  colors 


VEGETABLE  (COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


95 


which  consist  of  a  vegetable  dye,  combined  by  precipitation 
with  a  white  earthy  basis,  which  is  usually  alumina.  The 
general  method  of  preparation  is  to  add  to  the  colored  infu- 
sion a  solution  of  common  alum,  or  rather  a  solution  of  alum 
saturated  with  potash,  especially  when  the  infusion  has  been 
made  with  the  aid  of  acids.  At  first  only  a  slight  precipitate 
falls,  consisting  of  alumina  and  the  coloring  matter  ;  but  on 
adding  potash,  a  copious  precipitation  ensues,  of  the  alumina 
associated  with  the  dye.  When  the  dyes  are  not  injured,  but 
are  rather  brightened  by  alkalis,  the  above  process  is  reversed  ; 
a  decoction  of  the  dye-stuff  is  made  with  an  alkaline  liquor, 
and  when  it  is  filtered,  a  solution  of  alum  is  poured  into  it. 
The  third  method  is  practicable  only  with  substances  having 
a  great  affinity  for  subsulphate  of  alumina ;  it  consists  in 
agitating  recently  precipitated  alumina  with  the  decoction  of 
the  dye. 

Red  lakes. — The  finest  of  these  is  carmine.  This  beau- 
tiful pigment  was  accidentally  discovered  by  a  Franciscan 
monk  at  Pisa.  He  formed  an  extract  of  cochineal  with  salt 
of  tartar,  in  order  to  employ  it  as  a  medicine,  and  obtained, 
on  the  addition  of  an  acid  to  it,  a  fine  red  precipitate.  Hom- 
berg  published  a  process  for  preparing  it,  in  1656.  Carmine 
is  the  coloring  matter  of  cochineal,  prepared  by  precipitation 
from  a  decoction  of  the  drug.  Its  composition  varies  accord- 
ing to  the  mode  of  making  it.  The  ordinary  carmine  is  pre- 
pared with  alum,  and  consists  of  carminium  (see  Cochineal), 
a  little  animal  matter,  alumina,  and  sulphuric  acid. — (See 
Carmine.) 

Carminated  lake,  called  lake  of  Florence,  Paris,  or  Vien- 
na. For  making  this  pigment,  the  liquor  is  usually  employed 
which  is  decanted  from  the  carmine  process.  Into  this,  newly 
precipitated  alumina  is  put ;  the  mixture  is  stirred,  and  heat- 
ed a  little,  but  not  too  much.  Whenever  the  alumina  has 
absorbed  the  color,  the  mixture  is  allowed  to  settle,  and  the 
liquor  is  drawn  off.  Sometimes  alum  is  dissolved  in  the 
decoction  of  cochineal,  and  potash  is  then  added,  to  throw 
down  the  alumina  in  combination  with  the  coloring  matter ; 


96  DYEING  AND  CALIC9  PRINTING. 

but  in  this  way  an  indifferent  pigment  is  obtained.  Occa- 
sionally, solution  of  tin  is  added,  to  brighten  the  dye.* 

Madder  lake. — Diffuse  2  pounds  of  ground  madder  in  4 
quarts  of  water,  and  after  a  maceration  of  ten  minutes,  strain 
and  squeeze  the  grounds  in  a  press.  Repeat  this  maceration, 
&c,  twice  upon  the  same  portion  of  madder.  It  will  now 
have  a  fine  rose  color.  It  must  then  be  mixed  with  5  or  6 
pounds  of  water  and  half  a  pound  of  bruised  alum,  and 
heated  upon  a  water  bath  for  three  or  four  hours,  with  the 
addition  of  water  as  it  evaporates,  after  which  the  whole  must 
be  thrown  upon  a  filter  cloth.  The  liquor  which  passes  is  to 
be  filtered  through  paper,  and  then  precipitated  by  carbonate 
of  potash.  If  the  potash  be  added  in  three  successive  doses, 
three  different  lakes  will  be  obtained,  of  successively  dimin- 
ishing beauty.  The  precipitates  must  be  washed  till  the 
water  comes  off  colorless. 

For  the  following  process  of  making  lake  from  madder, 
the  Society  of  Arts  voted  Sir  H.  C.  Englefield  their  gold 
medal : — 

1.  Enclose  two  ounces  troy,  of  the  finest  Dutch  Crop  madder,  in  a  bag  of  fine 
and  strong  calico,  large  enough  to  hold  four  times  as  much.  Put  it  into  a  large 
marble  or  porcelain  mortar,  and  pour  on  it  a  pint  of  clear  soft  water,  cold.  Press 
the  bag  in  every  direction,  and  pound  and  rub  it  about  with  a  pestle,  as  much  as 
can  be  done  without  tearing  it ;  and  when  the  water  is  loaded  with  color,  pour  it 
off.  Repeat  this  process  till  the  water  comes  off  but  slightly  tinged,  for  which 
about  five  pints  will  be  found  sufficient. 

2.  Heat  all  the  liquor  in  an  earthen  or  silver  vessel  till  it  is  near  boiling,  and 
then  pour  it  into  a  large  basin,  into  which  a  troy  ounce  of  alum,  dissolved  in  a  pint 
of  boiling  soft  water,  has  been  previously  put;  stir  the  mixture  together,  and,  while 
stirring,  pour  in  gently  about  an  ounce  and  a  half  of  a  saturated  solution  of  sub- 
carbonate  of  potass.  Let  it  stand  till  cold  to  settle;  pour  off  the  clear  yellow 
liquor ;  add  to  the  precipitate  a  quart  of  boiling  soft  water,  stirring  it  well,  and 
when  cold,  separate  by  filtration.    The  lake  should  weigh  half  an  ounce. 

If  less  alum  be  employed,  the  color  will  be  somewhat 
deeper ;  with  less  than  three-fourths  of  an  ounce,  the  whole 
of  the  coloring  matter  will  not  unite  with  the  alumina.  Fresh 
madder  root  is  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  the  dry.    Almost  all 


*  A  lake  may  be  obtained  from  kermes,  in  the  same  way  as  from  cochineal;  but 
now  ft  is  seldom  had  recourse  to. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  97 

vegetable  coloring  matter  may  be  precipitated  into  lakes, 
more  or  less  beautiful,  by  means  of  alum  or  oxide  of  tin. 

Brazil-wood  lakes. — Brazil-wood  is  to  be  boiled  in  a  proper 
quantity  of  water  for  15  minutes ;  then,  alum  and  solution 
of  tin  being  added,  the  liquor  is  to  be  filtered,  and  a  solution 
of  potash  poured  in  as  long  as  it  occasions  a  precipitate. 
This  is  separated  by  the  filter,  washed  in  pure  water,  mixed 
with  a  little  gum  water,  and  made  into  cakes.  Or,  the  Bra- 
zil-wood may  be  boiled  along  with  a  little  vinegar,  the  decoc- 
tion filtered,  alum  and  salt  of  tin  added,  and  then  potash-ley 
poured  in  to  precipitate  the  lake.  For  1  pound  of  Brazil- 
wood, 30  to  40  pounds  of  water,  and  from  1|  to  2  pounds  of 
alum,  may  be  taken,  in  producing  a  deep  red  lake  ;  or  the 
same  proportions  with  half  a  pound  of  solution  of  tin.  If  the 
potash  be  added  in  excess,  the  tint  will  become  violet.  Cream 
of  tartar  occasions  a  brownish  cast. 

Yellow  lakes  are  made  with  a  decoction  of  Persian  or 
French  berries,  to  which  some  potash  or  soda  is  added ;  into 
the  mixture  a  solution  of  alum  is  to  be  poured  as  long  as  any 
precipitate  falls.  The  precipitate  must  be  filtered,  washed, 
and  formed  into  cakes,  and  dried.  A  lake  may  be  made  in 
the  same  way  with  quercitron,  taking  the  precaution  to  pu- 
rify the  decoction  of  the  dye-stuff  with  buttermilk  or  glue. 
After  filtering  the  lake  it  may  be  brightened  with  a  solution 
of  tin.  Annotto  lake  is  formed  by  dissolving  the  dye-stuff  in 
a  weak  alkaline  ley,  and  adding  alum  water  to  the  solution. 
Solution  of  tin  gives  this  lake  a  lemon  yellow  cast ;  acids  a 
reddish  tint.* 

LITMUS  is  prepared  in  Holland  from  the  species  of  lichen 
called  Lecanora  tartarea,  Roccellatartarea,  by  a  process 
which  has  been  kept  secret,  but  which  is  undoubtedly  analo- 
gous to  that  for  making  archil  and  cudbear.  The  ground 
lichens  are  first  treated  with  urine  containing  a  little  potash, 
and  allowed  to  ferment,  whereby  they  produce  a  purple-red  ; 

*  Blue  lakes  are  hardly  ever  prepared,  as  indigo,  Prussian  blue,  cobalt  blue,  and 
ultramarine,  answer  every  purpose  of  blue  pigments.  Green  lakes  are  made  by 
a  mixture  of  yellow  lakes  with  blue  pigments ;  but  chrome  yellows  mixed  with 
blues,  produce  all  the  requisite  shades  of  green. 

13 


98 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  colored  liquor,  treated  with  quicklime  and  some  more 
urine,  is  set  again  to  ferment  during  two  or  three  weeks,  then 
it  is  mixed  with  chalk  or  gypsum  into  a  paste,  which  is  form- 
ed into  small  cubical  pieces,  and  dried  in  the  shade.  Litmus 
has  a  violet -blue  color,  is  easy  to  pulverize,  is  partially  solu- 
ble in  water  and  dilute  alcohol,  leaving  a  residuum  consisting 
of  carbonate  of  lime,  of  clay,  silica,  gypsum,  and  oxide  of 
iron  combined  with  the  dye.  The  color  of  litmus  is  not  al- 
tered by  alkalies,  but  is  reddened  by  acids ;  and  is  therefore 
used  in  chemistry  as  a  delicate  test  of  acidity,  either  in  the 
state  of  solution  or  of  unsized  paper  stained  with  it.  It  is 
employed  to  dye  marble  blue. —  (See  Archil.) 

LOGWOOD. — The  Bois  de  Campeche,  and  Bois  bleu, 
of  the  French,  and  the  Blauholz  of  the  German  dyers.  This 
wood  is  brought  to  us  from  Jamaica  and  the  eastern  shores 
of  the  bay  of  Campeachy  ;  on  this  account  it  is  distinguished 
in  commerce  by  the  names  of  Campeachy  and  Jamaica  log- 
wood. The  former  is  considered  much  superior  to  the  latter, 
and  brings  always  a  higher  price  in  the  market,  Among 
botanists  the  logwood  tree  is  known  by  the  name  of  Hcema- 
toxylon  Campechiacum.  In  a  favorable  soil  it  grows  to  a 
great  size ;  its  bark  is  thin  and  smooth,  but  is  furnished  with 
thorns ;  its  leaves  resemble  the  laurel ;  its  wood  is  hard, 
compact,  and  capable  of  taking  a  fine  polish;  its  specific 
gravity  is  much  higher  than  water,  in  which  it  consequent- 
ly sinks. 

We  are  not  aware  who  first  introduced  logwood  as  a  dye- 
ing agent ;  but  its  nature,  and  the  art  of  using  it  as  such, 
seems  to  have  been  but  little  understood  in  the  reign  of 
Q,ueen  Elizabeth  ;  for  we  find  her  government  issuing  an 
enactment  entirely  forbidding  its  use.  The  document  is  cu- 
rious, and  affords  good  proof  of  the  absurdity  of  a  government 
interfering  with  the  rights  of  the  subject  in  matters  of  which 
it  is  ignorant.  The  act  is  entitled,  "  An  Act  for  the  abolish- 
ing of  certeine  deceitful  stuffe  used  in  dyeing  of  clothes  and 
it  goes  on  to  state  that,  "  Whereas  there  hath  been  brought 
from  beyond  the  seas  a  certeine  kind  of  stuffe  called  logwood, 
alias  blockwood,  wherewith  divers  dyers and  "  Whereas 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


99 


the  clothes  therewith  dyed,  are  not  only  solde  and  uttered  to 
the  great  deceyte  of  the  Q,ueenes  loving  subjects,  but  beyond 
the  seas,  to  the  great  discredit  and  sclaunder  of  the  dyers  of 
this  realme.  For  reformation  whereof,  be  it  enacted  by  the 
Q,ueene  our  Soveraygne  Ladie,  that  all  such  logwood,  in 
whoes  handes  soever  founde,  shall  be  openly  burned  by  au- 
thoritie  of  the  maior."  This  act  was  put  forth  in  the  23d 
year  of  the  Queen's  reign,  and  was  renewed  again  in  the 
39th,  with  the  addition,  that  the  person  so  offending  was  lia- 
ble to  imprisonment  and  the  pillory.*  Upwards  of  eighty 
years  elapsed  before  the  real  virtues  of  this  dyeing  agent  were 
acknowledged ;  and  there  is  no  dye-wood  we  know  now  so 
universally  used,  and  so  generally  useful. 

Like  many  other  valuable  substances,  logwood  was  long 
used  before  anything  was  known  of  the  real  nature  of  the 
coloring  principle.  Chevreul,  an  eminent  French  chemist, 
made  a  chemical  examination  of  the  wood,  and  found  it  to  con- 
tain a  distinct  coloring  substance,  which  he  called  hematine 
(which  see),  a  name  which  has  since  been  changed  to  heema- 
toxylin,  to  avoid  any  confusion  with  the  heematin  of  the  blood. 
Logwood  contains,  besides  this  coloring  matter,  resin  and  oil, 
acetic  acid,  and  a  double  salt  of  potash  and  lime,  with  a  vege- 
table acid.  It  sometimes  contains  also  sulphate  of  lime,  a 
little  alumina,  peroxide  of  iron,  and  oxide  of  manganese. 
These  ingredients,  however,  vary  ;  some  woods  having  more 
than  others,  and  others  wanting  some  of  the  ingredients  alto- 
gether. This  variousness  of  constitution,  no  doubt,  arises 
from  the  varying  qualities  of  the  soil  on  which  the  wood  is 
grown ;  but  the  quantity  of  some  of  the  mineral  ingredients 
has  frequently  a  baneful  effect  upon  light  shades,  giving  to  the 
dye  a  great  tendency  to  darken,  or  in  dyers'  language,  to 
sadden  the  color. — (See  chapter  II.,  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of 
Water.) 

*  It  should  be  remarked  in  extenuation  of  this  ungracious  interference  that  the 
dyers  of  the  good  Queen's  time  were  incapable  of  producing  any  fast  color  with 
logwood;  and,  therefore,  presuming  that  only  fugitive  colors  could  be  produced 
by  its  use,  for  the  honor  and  credit  of  the  Queen's  most  loving  subjects  forbade 
the  use  of  the  pernicious  stuff. 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ChevreuPs  process  for  procuring  the  coloring  matter  is,  by 
subjecting  logwood,  after  grinding,  to  digestion,  for  a  few  hours 
in  water,  at  120°  or  130°  F.,  afterwards  filtering  the  liquor 
and  evaporating  to  dryness ;  what  remains  is  put  into  strong 
alcohol  for  a  day ;  this  is  again  filtered,  and  the  clear  liquor 
evaporated  till  it  becomes  thick ;  to  this  is  added  a  little  water, 
and  evaporated  anew ;  it  is  then  left  to  itself,  and  the  coloring 
matter  crystalizes. 

An  improvement  on  this  method  has  been  recommended  by 
Erdmann.  The  extract  of  logwood,  being  evaporated  to  dry- 
ness, is  pulverized  and  mixed  with  a  considerable  quantity  of 
pure  silicious  sand,  to  prevent  the  agglutination  of  the  extract, 
and  the  whole  allowed  to  stand  several  days  with  five  or  six 
times  its  volume  of  ether ;  the  mixture  being  often  shaken, 
the  clear  solution  is  poured  off  and  distilled  until  there  is  only 
a  small  syrupy  residue.  By  this  means  most  of  the  ether  is 
saved  ;  and  this  being  mixed  with  a  certain  quantity  of  water, 
is  allowed  to  stand  for  some  days,  when  the  haematoxylin 
crystalizes  out,  and  may  be  dried  between  folds  of  blotting 
paper. 

We  are  afraid  both  of  these  processes  will  be  too  tedious  for 
adoption  in  a  dye-house.  We  have  seen  some  very  good  speci- 
mens of  the  haematoxylin  obtained  by  evaporating  a  strong 
decoction  of  logw'ood  nearly  to  dryness,  and  allowing  it  to 
stand  for  several  days  j  a  solid  matter  settles  to  the  bottom, 
having  a  syrupy  fluid  above  it ;  large  crystals  of  haematoxylin 
appear  to  grow  from  the  crust,  giving  it,  when  removed,  a 
most  beautiful  velvety  appearance.  The  crystals  vary  in 
length  from  £th  to  f  ths  of  an  inch.  They  dissolve  readily  in 
hot  water,  but  very  slowly  in  cold ;  the  matter  is  also  soluble 
in  alcohol.  When  dissolved  in  distilled  water,  the  solution  has 
a  beautiful  rich  wine  color ;  but,  when  the  least  trace  of  lime 
or  iron  is  present  in  the  water,  (and  very  few  waters  are  free 
of  these)  its'  color  is  materially  altered.  The  action  of  re- 
agents is  very  powerful.  Potash,  when  first  put  in,  colors  the 
solution  violet ;  but  this  speedily  passes  into  a  purple,  becom- 
ing brownish-yellow ;  and  in  a  little  time,  the  mixture  be- 
comes almost  colorless.    The  reason  of  this  final  change  is, 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


101 


that  a  quantity  of  oxygen  is  absorbed ;  the  hematoxylin  is 
thereby  destroyed,  and  the  caustic  alkali  converted  into  a  car- 
bonate from  the  decomposition  of  the  coloring  matter.  Caustic 
soda  has  a  similar  effect ;  but  the  carbonate  of  soda  is  much 
more  mild  in  its  action  than  carbonate  of  potash. 

The  action  of  ammonia  on  hematoxylin,  is  similar  to  that 
of  potash  and  soda,  but  much  more  powerful  in  regard  to  its 
changing  color,  and  less  destructive  upon  the  substance.  Some 
beautiful  and  also  amusing  experiments  may  be  performed 
with  ammonia  and  the  coloring  matter  of  logwood.  If  a  jar 
full  of  distilled  water  be  taken,  and  a  few  drops  of  a  solution 
of  hematoxylin  be  added,  not  so  much  as  give  a  perceptible 
coloring  to  the  water ;  in  adding  a  few  drops  of  ammonia,  the 
water  instantly  takes  a  reddish  tint,  and  changes  so  rapidly, 
that  in  two  minutes,  if  the  jar  is  large,  the  color  is  so  dark  a 
violet  shade,  that  the  light  can  hardly  be  transmitted  ;  in  a 
little  it  becomes  redder,  and  gradually  passes  away.  This 
experiment  may  be  repeated  by  placing  the  jar  simply  in  the 
fumes  of  ammonia  ;  the  water  begins  to  color  at  the  top,  and 
as  the  absorption  goes  on,  the  color  passes  gradually  down,  so 
that  when  it  is  dark  at  the  top  it  is  slightly  tinged  at  the  bot- 
tom ;  and  so  on  till  the  whole  is  converted  into  a  dark  violet, 
seemingly  by  magic. 

Erdmann  has  been  able  to  collect  this  compound  of  hema- 
toxylin and  ammonia,  and  finds  that  the  coloring  matter  absorbs 
three  equivalents  of  oxygen  under  the  influence  of  the  am- 
monia, and  is  converted  into  a  substance  which  he  names 
hcematein.  This  hematein  combines  with  ammonia,  and 
forms  a  violet  black  powder  which  is  soluble  in  water,  giving 
it  an  intense  purple  color  which  spontaneously  fades  and  passes 
away  by  keeping. 

The  action  of  the  alkalies  upon  logwood  is  similar  to  those 
described  upon  its  coloring  matter,  and  suggests  the  cause  why 
those  who  add  a  little  alkali  to  their  logwood  liquor  while  dye- 
ing black,  on  purpose  to  give  the  color  of  the  logwood  a  rich- 
ness, and  prevent  the  action  of  the  iron  upon  it,  invariably 
have  a  gray  bad  black.  Stale  urine,  indeed,  which  is  most 
generally  used  for  this  purpose,  if  not  used  cautiously,  produces 


102 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  same  bad  color  from  the  ammonia  which  it  contains.  For 
this  reason,  also,  when  lime  is  used  to  pass  the  cloth  through 
after  being  impregnated  with  iron,  we  always  wash  from  the 
lime,  otherwise  the  lime  on  the  cloth  causes  the  coloring 
matter  to  undergo  similar  changes  with  the  other  alkaline 
substances,  and  gives  the  blacks  thus  dyed  a  grayish  ap- 
pearance. 

The  action  of  metallic  oxides  upon  the  coloring  matter  of 
logwood,  is  somewhat  similar  to  the  action  of  these  oxides  on 
logwood  itself,  varying  considerably  with  the  dissolving  men- 
strua of  the  oxide  and  the  particular  state  of  oxidation,  as 
the  following  show : — 


1.  Protosalts  of  iron  . 

2.  Permanent  protosalts  of  iron 

3.  Neutral  protosalts  of  tin 

4.  Permanent  persalts  of  tin  . 

5.  Acetate  of  lead 

6.  Acetate  of  copper 


Blue-black. 

Jet-black,  becoming  brown. 
Rich  wine  color. 

Deep  wine  color,  becoming  brownish. 
Brownish  black,  becoming  bluish. 
Greenish  black,  becoming  brownish. 


These  are  the  principal  metallic  salts  used  with  logwood 
and  their  effects.  The  acids  in  which  the  oxides  are  dissolved 
affect  materially  the  results  obtained  ;  the  iron  is  used  as  the 
sulphates  or  acetates  ;  the  tin  as  chlorides  ;  lead  and  copper 
as  acetates.  The  protosalts  give,  with  logwood,  the  most 
brilliant,  and  also  the  most  permanent  colors.  The  iron 
protosalts,  if  exposed  to  the  air,  pass  very  readily  into  the 
state  of  persalts,  especially  if  the  salts  be  neutral — that  is, 
have  no  more  acid  than  is  combined  with  the  oxide.  A  little 
free  acid  prevents  this  change,  but  generally  produces  bad 
effects.  However,  where  the  use  of  a  protosalt  of  iron  is 
necessary,  any  persalt  in  the  mordant  may  be  reduced  to  the 
proto-state  by  the  immersion  in  it  of  a  piece  of  clean  iron,  a 
few  hours  previous  to  using  the  solution*  When  an  iron 
salt  becomes  peroxidised  by  exposure  to  the  air,  every  third 
atom  is  precipitated  as  an  insoluble  oxide — the  acid  leav- 
ing this  atom,  and  combining  with  two  atoms  iron,  and 
three  oxygen,  to  form  a  persalt,  which  is  composed  of  three 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article,  Iron. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  103 

acid,  three  oxygen,  and  two  iron.  When  a  piece  of  iron 
is  put  into  a  persatt  solution,  the  following  reaction  takes 
place : — 

Protosalt. 
Protosalt. 


Protosalt. 

This  operation  ought  to  be  performed  just  previous  to  using, 
and  as  little  exposed  as  possible  ;  for  when  the  salt  is  all  con- 
verted into  the  proto-state,  the  atmosphere  again  speedily  de- 
stroys it. 

Decoctions  of  logwood  are  prepared  in  the  dye-house,  either 
by  boiling  or  scalding  :  if  the  logwood  be  chipped  or  cut,  it 
requires  to  be  boiled  for  two  or  three  hours.  This  generally 
gives  the  purest  and  finest  colors  for  plumb-tubs*  When  the 
wood  is  ground,  the  decoctions  are  generally  made  by  pour- 
ing boiling  water  upon  it.  Some  put  the  quantity  required 
into  a  tub  ;  fill  this  with  boiling  water  ;  allow  the  grounds  to 
settle,  and  decant  the  solution  ;  but  the  best  method  is  to  use 
a  basket,  lined  with  cloth  ; — the  logwood  is  put  into  the  bas- 
ket, and  boiling  water  poured  upon  it ;  the  clean  decoction 
filters  through.  No  more  logwood  should  be  taken  than  what 
is  to  be  used  at  the  time,  as  it  loses  its  dyeing  properties  by 
standing  ;  the  color  passes  from  a  rich  wine-hue  to  a  yellow 
brown  ;  and  assumes  a  syrupy  appearance  ;  and  colors  dyed 
by  it  after  this  change  takes  place,  are  always  wanting  in 
brilliancy — they,  besides,  take  a  greater  quantity  to  produce 
the  same  depth  of  shade.  Parkes  in  his  chemical  essays,  has 
the  following  observations  bearing  upon  this  subject : — 

Considerable  advantage  is  derived  by  the  woolen  dyers  from  the  use  of  water  in 
the  preparation  of  rasped  logwood.    As  the  wood  is  cut  into  chips,  they  sprinkle 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article,  Tin ;  see  also  chaper  IX.  Part  III.,  article, 
Processes  of  Dyeing  Black. 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


it  abundantly  with  water,  and  in  that  moistened  state  it  is  thrown  into  large  heaps, 
and  sometimes  into  bins  of  great  size,  where  it  is  suffered  to  lie  as  long  as  is  con- 
venient. By  this  treatment,  the  chips  become  heated,  or  they  ferment,  as  the  dyers 
call  it,  and  thus  undergo  a  very  remarkable  change ;  for,  after  having  lain  a  few 
months  in  this  state,  they  give  out  the  coloring  matter  in  the  dyeing  copper  much 
more  easily ;  and  any  given  quantity  of  such  chips  will  produce  a  more  intense  dye 
than  could  have  been  obtained  from  an  equal  quantity  of  chips  which  had  not  been 
thus  heated.  It  is  difficult  to  account  for  this,  unless  we  suppose  that  the  water 
becomes  in  part  decomposed,  and  that  its  oxygen,  uniting  with  the  vegetable  color- 
ing matter,  renders  it  more  intense. 

We  have  found  that,  by  damping  the  wood  with  boiling 
water  a  little  before  pouring  the  necessary  quantity  of  boiling 
water  upon  it,  the  wood,  in  the  language  of  the  dyer,  is  much 
better  bled  ;  but  we  considered  this  to  result  from  softening 
the  particles  of  wood,  making  the  coloring  matter  more  easily 
dissolved  by  the  water  afterwards  applied.  Whether  any- 
thing more  is  effected  by  the  practice  noticed  by  Mr.  Parkes, 
or  if  any  decomposition  takes  place,  we  cannot  say.  If,  by 
fermentation,  is  meant  the  formation  of  acids,  we  know  that 
acids  do  not  produce  the  effects  stated  ;  but  if  it  is  a  fermen- 
tation, caused  by  the  decomposition  of  any  substance  having 
nitrogen  as  a  constituent,  the  result  would  be  the  formation 
of  ammonia,  a  substance,  as  we  have  already  noticed,  which 
has  a  powerful  influence  upon  the  coloring  matter  of  logwood, 
and  extracts  it  very  rapidly — a  property  possessed,  indeed,  by 
all  alkalies  and  alkaline  earths.  This  is  well  known  to  deal- 
ers in  logwood,  who  occasionally  sprinkle  it  with  water  con- 
taining a  little  lime,  which  gives  the  wood  a  richness  in  color, 
so  that  the  poorest  woods  thus  doctored,  appear  equal  to  those 
of  the  finest  quality.  Such  wood,  however,  never  produces 
good  light  shades,  neither  does  that  coming  through  the  ope- 
ration of  fermentation.  The  presence  of  an  alkali  may  be 
detected  in  logwood,  by  taking  a  little  in  a  tumbler,  and 
allowing  it  to  steep  for  a  few  hours  in  distilled  water,  and 
then  trying  the  solution  with  delicate  test  papers. 

The  means  we  have  usually  adopted  for  testing  the  quality 
of  the  logwood  to  be  purchased,  were  by  comparing  results. 
The  samples  to  be  tried  were  put  into  a  stove  to  dry  ;  then 
half  an  ounce  of  each  was  carefully  weighed  and  put  into 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


105 


separate  jars,  and  an  equal  quantity  of  boiling  water  poured 
upon  them  ;  a  measured  quantity  of  each  was  taken,  and  an 
equal  weight  of  cotton  dyed.  Having  always  by  us  some  of 
the  best  samples,  we  were  enabled  to  tell  pretty  accurately 
the  value  of  the  article,  and  seldom  had  to  complain  that  we 
had  been  disappointed  in  the  one  selected. 

We  have  already  stated  that  if  a  logwood  decoction  be  quite 
cold,  protochloride  of  tin  does  not  precipitate  it,  but  that,  if 
protochloride  of  tin  be  added  to  hot  water,  a  good  deal  of  the 
tin  is  precipitated ;  the  chloride  of  tin  is  decomposed,  and  there 
is  formed  a  compound  of  oxide  and  chloride  of  tin  which  is  in- 
soluble, forming  the  precipitate.  This  decomposition  some- 
times takes  place  if  the  chloride  of  tin  be  neutral  and  added 
to  cold  water.  This  can  be  prevented  by  the  addition  of  a 
little  muriatic  acid  to  the  salts  of  tin,  but  it  cannot  be  done 
with  that  which  is  to  be  mixed  with  logwood  without  deteri- 
orating the  mixture.  This  decomposition  of  the  chloride  of 
tin,  is,  we  think,  the  cause  of  the  logwood  being  precipitated, 
if  warm,  by  the  addition  of  the  tin  ;  and  the  mixture  of  oxide 
and  chloride  formed  has  a  very  strong  attraction  for  logwood. 
The  decomposition  and  combination  with  the  logwood  is  si- 
multaneous, forming  an  insoluble  compound,  very  different 
from  that  of  the  soluble  chloride  and  logwood  (formed 
when  the  logwood  is  cold)  constituting  the  plumb-tub. 
It  is  this  property  of  the  decomposition  of  the  salts  of  tin, 
when  diluted  with  water,  which  renders  it  so  desirable  as  a 
mordant. 

Taking  the  foregoing  observations  in  connection  with  what 
has  been  stated  in  chapters  L,  and  II.,  Part  III.,  we  think 
the  dyer  will  have  no  difficulty,  even  with  a  common  share 
of  intelligence,  of  becoming  a  perfect  master  of  his  business, 
at  least  so  far  as  the  dyeing  of  black  is  concerned. 

M. 

MADDER. — This  substance  rivals  indigo  in  value  as  a 
dye  drug,  both  from  the  beauty  and  permanence  of  colors  it 
produces.    It  is  the  root  of  a  plant  or  shrub  named  the  ruhia 

14 


106 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tinctorium,  that  grows  naturally  in  the  Levant,  Italy,  south- 
ern parts  of  France,  and  in  Switzerland.  It  is  cultivated  to  a 
great  extent  in  Holland.  Its  culture  has  been  often  attempted 
in  England,  but  without  success.  This  plant  was  well  known 
to  the  ancient  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  was  much  used  by 
them  as  a  dyeing  agent,  and  in  medicine. 

It  is  the  root  of  the  madder  that  is  used  for  dyeing ;  it  re- 
quires to  be  three  seasons  in  the  ground  before  fully  grown. 
The  roots  when  fully  grown  are  about  the  thickness  of  a 
common  quill.  When  properly  dried,  if  they  are  broke  or  cut 
with  a  knife,  they  present  to  the  eye  a  red  yellowish  color, 
which  assumes  a  dense  brownish  red  color  when  moistened ; 
but  the  more  yellowish  the  root  appears  when  dry,  the  more 
available  is  the  coloring  matter.  Madder  when  fresh  in  the 
root,  and  after  being  cut  and  ground  to  powder,  in  which  last 
state  it  is  used  by  the  dyer,  gives  off  a  heavy  swTeet  smell 
with  a  slight  earthy  flavor.  Madder  of  a  bitter,  stale,  or 
sour  smell,  is  invariably  of  inferior  quality. 

Madder  has  been  subjected  to  a  great  many  chemical  in- 
vestigations, the  study  of  which  is  highly  useful  to  those  who 
use  this  dye  drug  in  their  operations.  The  first  investiga- 
tion into  the  chemical  properties  of  madder,  led  to  the  dis- 
covery of  two  distinct  coloring  matters  which  it  contains  ;  one 
yellow,  which  is  very  soluble  in  cold  water,  and  was  named 
Xanthin ;  the  other  red,  moderately  soluble  in  hot  water, 
and  is  extracted  in  considerable  purity  by  sulphuric  acid ;  it 
is  called  Alizarine.  Several  methods  of  extracting  alizarine 
by  sulphuric  acid  have  been  proposed ;  the  following  is  prob- 
ably the  most  easily  practiced  : — 

One  pound  weight  of  madder  is  mixed  with  an  equal  weight  of  concentrated 
sulphuric  acid,  the  vessel  so  closed  up  that  no  heat  is  evolved,  and  allowed  to  stand 
in  a  cool  place  for  three  or  four  days.  By  this  process,  all  the  constituents  of  the 
madder  are  converted  into  charcoal,  except  the  alizarine.  When  this  charring  pro- 
cess is  completed,  it  is  carefully  dried,  and  then  digested  in  alcohol,  which  dis- 
solves the  alizarine,  and  leaves  the  charcoal.  The  solution  may  now  be  diluted 
with  water,  and  the  whole  put  into  a  retort  and  kept  at  a  heat  of  170°.  the  beak 
of  the  retort  being  connected  with  a  receiver,  the  alcohol  distils  over,  and  is  re- 
covered ;  water  and  alizarine  remain  in  the  retort,  which  being  filtered,  the  alizarine 
remains  upon  the  filter  in  a  state  of  great  purity.  It  is  of  a  beautiful  red  color, 
and  communicates  the  same  color  to  boiling  water. 


t 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  107 

Alizarine  is  soluble  in  turpentine,  naptha,  and  fat  oils. 
Chlorine  turns  it  into  a  yellowish  brown ;  sulphuric  acid  dis- 
solves it,  and  at  the  same  time  enlivens  the  color ;  muriatic 
and  nitric  acids  both  dissolve  it,  changing  the  color  from  red 
to  yellow.  Alkalies  give  it  a  violet  color ;  alumina  forms  with 
it  a  deep  red-brown  precipitate  ;  oxides  of  tin  the  same. 
Phosphate  of  soda  has  a  very  powerful  attraction  for  aliza 
line,  hence  the  reason  that  those  animals  who  take  madder 
into  their  system,  have  their  bones  dyed  of  a  red  color. 
This  fact  has  been  long  known  to  practical  dyers  who  use 
madder  in  their  operations. 

From  the  above  facts,  it  was  conceived  that  alizarine  con- 
stituted the  tme  coloring  matter  of  madder  ;  and  means  were 
then  adopted  to  separate  this  coloring  matter  from  the  vegeta- 
ble, and  use  it  pure  ;  but  it  was  afterwards  found  that  a  fixed 
dye  could  not  be  obtained  by  pure  alizarine,  and  it  therefore 
was  not  the  true  coloring  matter  of  madder.  This  led  to 
further  investigations,  from  which  it  appears  that  madder 
contains  five  different  coloring  matters  which  have  been 
named, — madder  purple,  madder  red,  madder  orange, 
madder  yellow }  and  madder  brown. 

Madder  purple  is  obtained  by  the  following  process  : — 

1.  The  madder  is  washed  in  water  at  about  summer  heat:  then  boiled  in  a 
strong  sdlution  of  alum  for  an  hour,  the  clear  liquor  is  afterwards  decanted,  and 
sulphuric  acid  added,  which  precipitates  the  madder  purple  with  a  number  of  im- 
purities. 2.  These  are  removed  by  washing  in  boiling  water,  then  with  pure  mu- 
riatic acid,  and  afterwards  dissolving  in  alcohol. 

Madder  purple  is  soluble  in  hot  water,  and  if  pure,  gives 
the  water  a  dark  pink  color.  If  the  water  contain  lime,  a 
part  of  the  madder  purple  is  precipitated  as  a  dark  reddish 
brown  substance.  Cotton  saturated  with  the  acetate  of  alu- 
mina is  dyed  a  bright  red,  if  the  quantity  of  madder  purple 
be  not  in  excess  ;  when  it  is  so,  the  color  will  have  more  of  a 
purple  cast.  A  boiling  solution  of  alum  forms  with  the  mad- 
der purple,  a  cherry  red  solution.  Caustic  potash  forms  with 
it  a  fine  yellowish  red  color.  Carbonate  of  soda  and  potash 
affect  it  in  the  same  manner.  Sulphuric  acid  produces  a 
bright  red  color  or  dark  rose. 


108  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

Madder  red  is  separated  from  madder  purple,  in  consequence 
of  its  not  being  soluble,  in  a  strong  solution  of  alum.  It  is 
obtained  by  boiling  madder  in  a  dilute  solution  of  alum,  when 
a  reddish-brown  precipitate  is  obtained.  This  is  repeatedly 
boiled  in  pure  muriatic  acid,  then  well  washed  with  water,  and 
boiled  in  alcohol.  This  dissolves  madder  red,  and  madder 
purple.  The  alcoholic  solution  is  evaporated  and  allowed  to 
cool,  when  there  is  deposited  an  orange-yellow  precipitate; 
this  is  repeatedly  boiled  in  a  strong  solution  of  alum.  So  long- 
as  the  solution  becomes  colored,  the  insoluble  portion  is  madder 
red.  It  is  a  yellowish  brown  powder,  and  imparts  to  cotton 
impregnated  with  the  aluminous  mordant,  a  dark  red  color 
when  in  excess ;  but  if  the  cotton  be  in  excess,  a  brick  red 
color  is  produced.  Caustic  potash  forms  a  violet-purple  solu- 
tion ;  carbonate  of  soda  a  red  liquid ;  sulphuric  acid  a  brick- 
red  solution. 

Madder  orange  is  obtained  from  the  two  former  coloring 
matters  by  its  little  solubility  in  alcohol.  It  is  obtained  by 
macerating  madder  for  twenty-four  hours  in  distilled  water, 
the  infusion  strained  off  and  allowed  to  repose  for  a  few  hours, 
the  liquor  carefully  decanted  and  filtered  through  paper,  the 
madder  orange  remains  upon  the  paper ;  it  may  be  washed 
with  cold  water,  and  afterwards  purified  by  spirits  of  wine  in 
which  it  is  not  soluble.  It  is  a  yellow  powder ;  imparts  to  cotton, 
impregnated  with  an  aluminous  mordant,  a  bright  orange 
color.  When  in  excess,  a  boiling  solution  of  alum  forms  with 
madder  orange  an  orange-yellow  solution ;  caustic  potash,  a 
dark  rose  color;  carbonate  of  soda,  orange  color;  sulphuric 
acid,  an  orange-yellow  color.* 


*  Mr.  John  Twindells,  of  Manchester,  obtained  a  patent,  in  June,  1844,  "  for 
improvements  in  dyeing  and  producing  color."  These  improvements  consist  in 
preparing  (when  madder,  madder  root,  and  munjeet  is  used)  the  madder  in  the 
following  way: — "Take  any  given  quantity  of  madder  and  reduce  it  to  a  fine 
powder,  then  mix  it  with  as  much  of  a  solution  of  caustic  ammonia,  potash,  or 
soda,  as  will  thoroughly  carbonize  the  yellow  or  fawn  coloring  matter  therein ;  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  madder  will  require  varying  proportions.  The  best  French  madder 
will  require  one-eighth  part  of  its  weight  of  caustic  alkali,  or  of  ammonia,  as  much 
of  the  solution  as  will  be  equivalent  in  saturating  a  given  weight  of  an  acid,  as  one- 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


109 


Madder  yellow  is  characterized  by  its  easy  solubility  in 
water ;  it  is  a  yellow  gummy  mass  ;  communicates  to  mor- 
danted cotton  a  pale  nankeen  color,  but  does  not  of  itself  form 
a  true  dye.  Madder  which  contains  much  of  this  is  inferior 
in  quality,  as  the  yellow  becomes  so  incorporated  with  the 
other  colors  as  to  materially  deteriorate  them,  and  to  require 
several  operations  to  free  the  goods  from  it  afterwards.  Mad- 
der brown  is  a  brownish-black  dry  mass,  is  of  no  importance 
as  a  dye-stuff,  and  does  not  enter  into  any  of  the  colors  dyed 
by  madder ;  is  neither  soluble  in  water  nor  alcohol. 

Besides  these  five  coloring  matters,  madder  contains  two 
acid  substances  named  Madderic  acid  and  Rubiacic  acid, 
which  have  no  dyeing  properties,  and  therefore  are  not  to  be 
detailed  further  than  to  show  the  intimate  knowledge  which 
chemists  possess  of  this  agent,  so  important  were  any  investi- 
gation upon  madder  considered,  that  the  JSociete  Industrielle 
de  Mulhouse  for  several  years  offered  2000  francs  as  a  premium 
for  the  best  analytical  investigation  of  this  substance. 

It  will  be  observed  in  the  brief  outline  of  the  five  coloring 
matters  of  madder,  that  only  three  of  them  are  of  importance 
to  the  dyer.  It  will  also  be  observed,  that  these  three  coloring 
substances  have  a  similarity  of  action  upon  mordanted  cottons, 

eighth  of  potash.  The  powdered  madder,  when  mixed  with  any  of  these  solutions, 
is  exposed  to  a  heat  not  exceeding  175°  Fahr. ;  it  is  then  dissolved  in  water,  and  is 
ready  to  be  used  in  dyeing,  or  forming  madder  lakes  or  pinks. 

"If  preferred,  the  madder  may  be  first  treated  with  sulphuric  acid,  as  in  making 
garancine,  and  the  alkali  afterwards  applied.  By  this  method  the  operation  of  heat 
upon  the  alkalies  will  not  be  required,  but  they  may  be  dissolved  in  a  solution  of 
any  of  the  alkalies,  or  their  carbonates,  or  other  salts  thereof:"  for  these  purposes 
the  patentee  prefers  the  caustic  solution  of  ammonia,  as  producing  the  best  effects. 

"  Cotton  and  linen  fabrics  which  are  required  to  be  dyed  with  the  prepared 
madder,  or  with  the  common  kinds,  or  even  with  other  vegetable  matters,  are  pre- 
pared in  the  following  manner: — After  the  fabrics  are  bleached,  and  thoroughly 
cleansed  from  impurities,  they  are  steeped  in  a  solution  of  gelatine  or  albumen,  of 
a  specific  gravity  of  1-04,  for  several  hours ;  they  are  then  removed,  and  steeped  in 
a  strong  solution  of  tannin  for  twelve  hours ;  after  which  they  must  be  wrung  out 
and  thoroughly  dried.  This  process  may  be  repeated,  or  not,  according  to  the 
depth  of  color  required ;  and  the  usual  process  of  dyeing  may  be  proceeded  with 
in  the  ordinary  way."  The  patentee  claims  "  the  use  of  ammonia,  or  other  alkal- 
ies, for  preparing  a  madder  dyeing  liquor;"  but  this,  we  think,  he  will  have  some 
difficulty  in  holding. 


110 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


taken  singly ;  not  one  of  them  forms  a  good  dye,  but  they 
constitute  the  elements  which,  together,  produce  the  richest 
and  most  permanent  red  that  we  are  in  possession  of ;  there- 
fore, speaking  practically,  it  is  only  necessary  here  to  consider 
madder  as  having  only  two  coloring  matters — the  one  dun  or 
yellow,  which  constitutes  the  impurity  of  madder,  and  which 
the  dyer  endeavors  to  get  rid  of.  This  coloring  matter  does 
not  combine  with  the  cloth  alone,  but  it  has  a  powerful  attrac 
tion  for  the  other  coloring  matters,  and  combines  with  them 
when  on  the  cloth,  and  has  to  be  separated  by  after  processes. 
The  other,  a  red  coloring  matter,  which  includes  the  madder 
red,  orange,  and  purple,  for  they  unite  with  mordanted  cotton 
as  one,  and  are  known  to  the  practical  dyer  as  one.  This 
coloring  matter  is  very  difficult  to  dissolve  in  water,  has  no 
strong  decoction,  can  be  obtained  by  boiling,  which  makes  it 
less  useful  in  the  fancy  dye-house,  not  being  very  applicable  in 
compound  colors  ;  indeed,  many  extensive  dye-houses  do  not 
rank  madder  as  belonging  to  their  province  ;  and  where  it  is 
used  in  a  fancy  dye-house,  it  is  generally  to  give  a  peculiar 
tint  to  light  drabs  and  fawns,  and  for  dyeing  light  salmon 
color.  When  deep  colors  are  to  be  dyed  with  madder,  the 
goods  must  be  put  into  the  dye-bath  along  with  the  madder.* 

*  Mr.  Frederick  Steiner,  an  English  dyer,  obtained  a  patent,  in  August,  1843, 
for  the  manufacture  of  garancine  from  refuse  madder,  formerly  thrown  away,  as 
being  exhausted  of  its  dyeing  principle.  His  process,  or  method  of  operating,  is 
as  follows  : — Outside  the  dye-house  a  large  filter  is  constructed  by  sinking  a  hole 
in  the  ground,  and  lining  it  at  the  bottom  and  sides  with  bricks  without  mortar. 
Upon  the  bricks  is  placed  a  quantity  of  stones  or  gravel,  and  above  is  placed  a 
common  wrapping,  such  as  that  used  for  sacks.  Below  the  bricks  is  a  drain  to 
take  off  the  water  from  the  filter.  In  a  tub  adjoining  the  filter  is  placed  a  quantity 
of  dilute  sulphuric  acid— sp.  gr.  105,  water  being  100.  Hydro-chloric  acid  also 
answers  the  purpose  ;  but  the  other  is  preferable.  A  channel  is  made  from  the  dye- 
vessels  to  the  filter,  and  the  madder  which  has  been  employed  in  dyeing,  and 
which  is  in  the  state  technically  called  spent,  is  run  from  the  dye- vessels  to  the 
filter;  meantime,  such  portion  of  the  sulphuric  acid  is  run  in,  and  mixed  with  it, 
as  changes  the  eolor  of  the  solution  and  the  undissolved  madder  to  an  orange  tint. 
The  action  of  the  acid  is  to  precipitate  the  coloring  matter  which  is  held  in  solu- 
tion, and  to  prevent  the  undissolved  madder  from  fermenting.  When  the  water 
has  drained  from  the  madder  through  the  filter,  the  residuum  is  taken  out  and  put 
into  bags.  These  are  placed  in  a  hydraulic  press,  and  the  water  is  as  far  as  possi- 
ble expressed  from  their  contents.    Still,  however,  from  one  half  to  two-thirds  of 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  Ill 

GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  MADDER,  &c— We 
shall  conclude  this  article  with  a  few  observations  on  the  dif- 
ferent brands,  and  on  the  adulteration  of  madders,  and  the 
best  methods  of  detecting  them. 

I.  As  to  the  brands  or  marks  on  madder  casks,  it  is  difficult 
to  give  positive  information  on  the  subject,  especially  since 
quackery  has  endeavored  to  deceive  by  extraordinary  names. 
Originally  only  the  following  marks  were  known  : — 

Mulle. 
FF,  Fine  fine. 
SF,  Superfine. 
SFF,  Superfine  fine. 
These  marks  were  put  upon  the  casks  without  other  designa- 
tions.   The  tint  alone  decided  to  what  sort  of  root  the  pow 
der  belonged.    At  present  the  madders  are  either — ■ 
Palus,*  or 
Rosy,  or 

Half  Palus,  half  rosy. 


the  remaining  weight  is  water.  The  compressed  material  is  next  passed  through  a 
sieve.  Into  5  cwt.  of  the  madder  in  this  state,  and  placed  in  a  wooden  or  lead 
cistern,  is  added  1  cwt.  of  the  sulphuric  acid  of  commerce,  by  sprinkling  it  on  the 
madder  through  a  lead  vessel  similar  in  form  to  the  common  watering-can  used  by 
gardeners.  The  contents  of  the  cistern  are  then  well  worked  together  with  a  spe- 
cies of  rake ;  and  are  next  placed  upon  a  perforated  lead  plate,  placed  about  five  or 
six  inches  above  the  bottom  of  the  vessel.  Between  this  plate  and  the  bottom  of 
the  vessel  a  current  of  steam  is  introduced,  so  that  it  passes  through  the  perforated 
shelve,  and  the  madder  which  rests  upon  it.  During  this  process,  which  occupies 
from  one  to  two  hours,  a  substance  is  produced  of  a  dark  brown  color  approach- 
ing to  black.  This  substance  is  garancine  and  insoluble  in  the  carbonates.  The 
whole  material  is  then  spread  upon  a  floor  to  cool ;  when  cold  it  is  placed  upon  a 
filter  and  washed  with  cold  water,  until  the  water  passing  from  it  is  not  percepti- 
bly acid.  It  is  then  put  into  bags,  and  a  second  time  subjected  to  pressure  by  the 
hydraulic  press.  It  is  then  dried,  and  ground  to  a  fine  powder  under  ordinary 
madder  stones,  and  afterwards  passed  through  a  sieve.  To  neutralize  any  acid 
which  may  remain,  four  or  five  pounds  of  dry  carbonate  of  soda  is  added  to  every 
cwt.  and  intimately  mixed.    The  garancine  is  then  ready  for  use. 

*  The  best  madder  is  made  with  the  roots  of  the  Palus.  In  Avignon  the  name 
of  Palus  is  given  to  some  tracts  of  land  anciently  covered  with  marshes ;  these 
lands,  enriched  by  animal  and  vegetable  remains,  are  eminently  suited  for  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  madder,  and  the  roots  they  produce  are  almost  all  red,  whilst  other 
kinds  of  soils  produce  rose  colored  roots. 


112 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


When  it  is  wished  to  denote  that  a  madder  is  all  Palus,  a  P  is 
added  to  the  mark.    The  following  are  the  actual  marks : — 

Mulle,  without  distinctive  marks. 

FP  ^     To  each  of  these  marks  the  letter 
SFF    P  is  added  for  Palus, 
SFFF    R  for  Rosy, 
EXTF  '  PP  for  Pure  Palus, 
EXTSF    RPP  for  Pure  Red  Palus, 
EXTSFF  J  Half  Palus,  Half  Rosy,  without  distinction. 

According  to  these  designations,  it  is  by  no  means  rare  to  find 
the  absurd  marks  of 

EXTSFRPP, 

which  is  to  be  understood  thus  : — 

Extra  Superfine  Fine  Pure  Red  Palus. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  such  absurdities  can  only  exist 
in  a  country  where  fraud  has  made  revolting  progress.  It 
often  happens  that  the  mark  EXTSF,  now  used,  is  not  equal 
to  the  old  one  of  SFF.  The  extra  fine  is  especially  manu- 
factured with  the  heart,  or  the  ligneous  part  of  the  root. 
This  mark  gives  less  depth,  because  the  ligneous  part  is  not 
so  rich  in  coloring  principle  as  the  fleshy  part,  or  the  bark 
of  the  root,  but  it  affords  a  much  more  lively  color.  The 
madders  of  Avignon  are  packed  in  deal  casks  of  900  kilo- 
grammes in  weight.  The  insides  of  these  casks  are  gene- 
rally lined  with  very  thick  pasteboard,  in  order  to  prevent 
contact  with  the  air,  which  blackens  the  powders,  causes 
them  to  appear  less  beautiful,  and  after  a  certain  time  de- 
stroys much  of  their  tinctorial  properties.  Light  also  is  very 
injurious. 

It  is  rather  difficult  to  ascertain  exactly  the  quantity  of 
madder  gathered  each  year  in  France,  as  well  in  Alsatia  as 
in  the  ancient  county  of  Yenaissin.  In  1837,  the  crop  of  the 
Lizaris  amounted  in  these  districts,  to  1,200,000  kilogrammes,* 

*  The  kilogramme  is  equal  to  21b.  3oz.,  or  4-428  drams  avoirdupois  weight.  See 
the  articles  Weight  and  Measure  in  the  Appendix. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  113 

which  is  equivalent  to  from  48,000  to  50,000  barrels,  of  which 
part  was  sent  to  the  different  places  where  it  is  consumed,  as 
well  within  as  without  the  country,  conformably  to  the  follow- 
ing table : — 

Kilogrammes. 


Rouen,  Havre,  and  Dunkirk,      ....  3,800 

Antwerp,   500 

Genoa  and  Leghorn,   183 

London,  Liverpool,  and  Glasgow,  .  .  3,760 
London,  Liverpool,  and  Glasgow,  8000  bales  of 

lizari,  which  represent,           ....  3,500 

Hamburgh,     .......  530 

St.  Petersburgh,   1,608 

Odessa,   110 

Rotterdam,   423 

Trieste,   205 

New  York  and  Boston,   812 

Mulhausen,  Strasburg,  Metz,  and  Basle,  for  the 
consumption  of  Alsatia,  Prussia,  Switzerland, 

Bavaria,  Austria,  &c,   15,000 


Total,    30,481 

There  remained,  therefore,  of  the  harvest  of  1837,  at 
Avignon,  and  in  the  department,  from  18,000  to  20,000  bar- 
rels, when  the  harvest  of  1838  was  about  to  be  got  in.  This, 
although  less  than  the  former,  amounted  to  between  36,000 
and  40,000  barrels.  The  manufacture  at  Avignon  is  always 
in  a  prosperous  condition.  The  state  of  the  customs  shows 
that  in  1840  there  was  exported  from  France,  2,161,158 
kilogrammes  lizaris,  which  represent  in  value  1,620,869 
francs,  and  12,114,054  kilogrammes  of  madder,  equal  to 
12,114,054  francs ;  that  in  1841  there  were  exported  1,896,416 
kilogrammes  of  lizaris,  equal  to  1,422,312  francs,  and 
11,840,886  kilogrammes  of  madder,  equal  to  10,840,886 
francs.  The  importation  of  foreign  lizaris  and  madders  is 
very  small,  on  account  of  the  heavy  duties.  The  lizaris 
chiefly  come  from  the  Levant  by  way  of  Turkey,  the  Bar- 

15 


114 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


bary  States,  from  Tuscany,  the  two  Sicilies,  and  from  Ger- 
many. The  madders  come  especially  from  Holland  and 
Belgium. 

II.  On  account  of  the  high  price  of  madder,  and  especially, 
from  the  facility  of  introducing  into  this  substance  foreign 
pulverulent  matters,  which  the  most  practiced  eye  cannot  de- 
tect, it  is  often  adulterated.  There  are  two  kinds  of  adulter- 
ation ;  sometimes  earthy  or  mineral  substances,  are  incorpo- 
rated with  the  madder,  and  sometimes  vegetable  substances 
are  added  to  it,  the  color  of  which  resembles  that  of  madder. 

Adulteration  by  Mineral  substances. — The  mineral  sub- 
stances which  have  been  introduced,  or  which  are  still  found 
in  ground  madders,  are  brick  dust,  red  and  yellow  ochre, 
yellowish  sand,  yellowish  clay,  or  argillaceous  earth.  A 
madder  which  contains  earthy  substances,  grates  between  the 
teeth,  when  chewed.  A  small  quantity  of  such  a  madder, 
for  example,  from  25  to  30  grammes,*  introduced  into  a  large 
glass  globe,  and  diluted  with  5  or  6  litres!  of  water,  quickly 
deposits  the  greater  portion  of  the  earthy  substances  at  the 
bottom  of  the  vessel.  When  the  suspended  madder  is  de- 
canted, and  the  deposit  agitated  with  a  fresh  quantity  of 
water,  the  earthy  substances  are  isolated,  and  may  be  ex- 
amined. 

To  determine  the  proportions,  however,  more  exactly, 
processes  must  be  had  recourse  to.  The  best  is  that  of  cal- 
cining, at  a  red  heat,  in  a  platinum  crucible. 

5  grms.,  (about  77  grains  Troy),  of  the  madder  under  ex- 
amination, are  first  dried  completely  at  212°  Fahr.  and  are 
weighed  with  great  exactness,  and  then  put  into  the  platinum 
crucible,  which  must  be  weighed  beforehand.  The  crucible 
is  then  shut,  and  heat  gradually  applied.  When  perfectly 
incinerated,  the  crucible  is  taken  out  of  the  furnace,  and  left 
to  cool,  and  then  weighed.    Its  weight  being  deducted  from 


*  A  gramme  is  equal  to  15  1-2  Troy  grains, 
t  A  litre  is  equal  to  about  60  cubic  inches,  or  2  1-8  wine  pints, 
articles  Weight  and  Measure.') 


. — (See  Appendix, 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


115 


the  quantity  employed,  the  difference  gives  the  proportion  of 
the  cinders  obtained. 

These  cinders  are  composed,  1st,  of  the  fixed  mineral  mat- 
ters contained  in  the  root ;  and  2nd,  of  the  earthy  substances, 
foreign  to  the  chemical  constitution  of  the  root,  and  which  have 
been  accidentally,  or  fraudulently  mixed  with  the  madder. 

Some  experiments  made  by  M.  M.  Giradin  and  Labillar- 
diere  on  a  large  scale,  in  1838,  went  to  prove  that  madder 
which  is  very  pure,  and  quite  free  from  epidermis,  or  any 
foreign  earthy  matter,  and  dried  with  care,  gives,  by  incinera- 
tion, 5  per  cent,  of  ash  ;  that  the  lizaris  of  Provence,  stripped 
of  its  pellicle,  gives,  on  an  average,  8-80  per  cent,  of  ash. 

According  to  M.  Henri  Schlumberger,  100  parts  of  Alsatian 
lizaris,  washed  in  distilled  water,  and  dried  at  212°  Fahr. 
give  7*20  per  cent,  of  ash ;  whilst  100  parts  of  lizaris  of 
Avignon,  prepared  in  the  same  way,  give  8*766. 

According  to  M.  Chevreul,  100  parts  of  lizaris,  from  the 
Levant,  dried  at  212°,  give  9*80  ash. 

When  an  Avignon  madder,  SFF,  (the  mark  most  gene- 
rally used;)  subjected  to  the  test  of  incineration,  gives  a 
greater  weight  of  ash  than  5  per  cent.,  which  has  been  taken 
as  the  average  of  numerous  experiments  made  by  French 
chemists,  the  excess  must  be  attributed  to  the  presence  of 
foreign  earthy,  or  sandy,  matters,  either  arising  from  adultera- 
tion, or  a  careless  preparation  of  the  powder. 

When  the  excess  is  only  from  three  to  four-hundredths,  it 
is  probably  owing  to  some  fault  in  the  preparation  of  the 
madder,  the  manufacturer  not  having  separated  the  epidermis, 
which  is  always  coated  with  the  earth  that  surrounds  the 
root,  carefully  enough  by  grinding ;  but  when  the  excess  is 
above  4  or  5  per  cent.,  or  more,  it  is  the  result  of  fraud. 

The  madders  obtained  from  the  merchants  give  very  varia- 
ble results,  with  respect  to  the  proportion  of  ash  which  they 
furnish,  as  the  following  table  shows : — 

Per  Cent,  of  Ash. 

On  6  trials  the  mulle  madder  of  Avignon  gave  .       .       .      4  00 

On  7  trials  the  madder  SF  of  Avignon  gave  from      .       .       .     12-40  to  20-00 

On  18  trials  the  madder  SFF  of  Avignon  gave  from         .      .      7-40  to  23*00 


116 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Per  Cent,  of  Ash. 

On  4  trials  the  madder  SFFRP  of  Avignon  gave  from  .  .  12  00  to  16.00 
On  3  trials  the  madder  SFFP  of  Avignon  gave  from  .  .  10  00  to  10  80 
On  7  trials  the  madder  EXTF  of  Avignon  gave        .       .      •      10  00 

When,  in  testing  a  madder  by  incineration,  the  quantity 
operated  on  amounts  to  5  grammes  (about  77  grains  Troy), 
the  weight  of  the  ash  must  be  multiplied  by  20,  in  order  to 
bring  it  to  100  parts,  and  from  the  figure  obtained  7  parts, 
representing  the  mean  weight  of  ash  p.  c.  furnished  by  good 
madder,  subtracted ;  the  surplus  then  represents  the  proportion 
of  earthy  matters,  or  sand,  added  by  the  manufacturer.  Con- 
sequently a  madder  furnishing  16*40  per  cent,  of  ash  will  con- 
tain 9-40  per  cent,  of  foreign  matter. 

III.  Adulteration  by  Vegetable  substances. — The  vegeta- 
ble substances  which  are  introduced  into  madders,  are  pow- 
ders of  little  or  no  value,  such  as  sawdust,  almond  shells, 
bran,  mahogany  wood,  sandal  wood,  fir  tree  wood,  &c.  The 
adulteration  by  these  different  substances,  is  far  more  preju- 
dicial to  the  dyer  than  that  by  mineral  substances  ;  for,  be- 
sides diminishing,  like  the  latter,  the  quantity  of  coloring 
matter  of  a  given  weight  of  madder,  they  also  injure  the  dye. 

Unfortunately,  the  means  of  detecting  this  kind  of  fraud  is 
not  so  simple  as  the  process  for  determining  the  presence  of 
mineral  matters.  It  is  extremely  difficult  to  ascertain  with 
what  kind  of  vegetable  substance  a  madder  has  been  adul- 
terated. 

The  first  process  consists,  in  determining  the  coloring 
power  by  means  of  the  colorimeter  ;  the  second,  in  determin- 
ing this  coloring  power,  as  well  as  the  solidity  and  brilliancy 
of  the  colors,  by  an  operation  of  dyeing.  The  third  is  to  as- 
certain the  absolute  quantity  of  the  coloring  principle  in  a 
given  sample. 

"  The  different  experiments,"  says  M.  Giradin,  "  are  always 
made  comparatively,  by  taking  for  test  a  madder  prepared 
with  all  possible  care,  and  having  the  same  marks  as  that 
under  examination.  As  with  indigo  and  other  tinctorial  sub- 
stances,* a  single  experiment  is  not  sufficient;  and  by  reason 


*  See  chapters  I.  and  V.  Part  II. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


117 


of  the  difficulty  there  is  of  correctly  verifying  the  value,  or 
the  quantity,  of  the  madders,  it  is  indispensable,  in  order  to 
decide  with  any  certainty,  to  check  the  experiments  by  each 
other.  This  is  the  only  way  of  obtaining  satisfactory  re- 
sults." 

1.  Determination  of  the  Coloring  Power  by  the  Colorime- 
ter.— The  following  is  the  mode  of  operating : — The  test 
madder,  and  the  madder  under  examination,  are  dried  at 
262°  Fahr.,  and  an  account  is  kept  of  the  respective  quan- 
tities of  hygrometric  water  they  contain.  25  grammes  (387 J 
grains  Troy),  of  each  sample  are  mixed  with  250  grammes 
(3375  grains  Troy)  of  water  at  68°.  After  three  hours  of 
contact,  the  whole  is  thrown  upon  a  linen  cloth.  A  second 
maceration  is  made  with  the  same  amount  of  water,  and  for 
the  same  length  of  time.  The  madders  are  then  washed 
with  250  grammes  of  cold  water,  dried  at  212°,  and  weighed, 
in  order  to  ascertain  the  proportions  of  soluble,  saccharine, 
and  mucilaginous  matters  which  they  have  lost  by  these  pre- 
liminary washings,  which  only  remove  a  trifling  quantity  of 
red  coloring  matter. 

5  grammes  (15£  grains  Troy)  of  each  of  the  two  madders 
are  then  introduced  into  little  glass  globes  with  40  parts  of 
water,  and  6  parts  of  very  pure  alum,  boiled  for  a  quarter  of 
an  hour,  and  the  boiling  liquids  filtered.  The  grounds  are 
washed  with  2  parts  of  hot  water.  Two  other  decoctions, 
similar  to  the  first,  are  made,  and  each  time  the  residue  is 
washed  with  2  parts  of  hot  water.  The  products  of  the  three 
decoctions  are  combined,  and  the  liquids  from  the  two  sam- 
ples of  madder  compared  by  the  colorimeter. 

2.  Determination  of  the  Tinctorial  Power  by  Dyeing. — 
In  order  to  determine  the  value  of  a  madder  by  dyeing,  a  test 
sample  of  superior  madder  must  be  taken,  and  it  should  be 
taken  from  a  cask  which  had  been  used,  previously,  in  dyeing 
cotton  goods.  By  acting  with  determinate  quantities  of  mad- 
der, cloth,  and  water,  correct  results  may  be  had.  Patterns 
of  calico,  intended  for  comparison,  should  be  prepared  in  the 
following  manner : — 


118 


DYEING 


AND 


CALICO  PRINTING. 


Ten  samples  are  cut  from  a  piece  of  calico  mordanted  for  red  and  black.  These 
are  well  cleansed  in  a  dung  bath.  Each  of  the  samples  is  about  5  centimetres* 
square  (2  inches),  and  are  dyed  with  proportions  of  madder,  increasing  progressively 
from  1  gramme  (7?  grains  Troy)  up  to  10  grammes  (31  grains  Troy),  so  as  to  have 
a  scale  of  10  shades,  of  which  the  gradations  represent  each  a  known  weight  of 
madder.  The  maddering  of  these  pieces  is  effected  in  the  following  manner: — In 
a  large  copper  basin  with  a  flat  bottom,  which  is  covered  with  a  layer  of  hay,  are 
placed  10  glass  jars  with  wide  mouths,  containing  from  \\  to  2  litres  each  (the 
litre,  as  before  stated,  is  equal  to  2|  wine  pints).  The  basin  is  filled  with  water 
heated  to  104°  Fahr.  A  sample  of  the  calico  is  now  put  into  each  of  the  jars,  the 
madder  weighed  with  care,  and  lastly,  three-fourths  of  a  litre  of  distilled  water, 
the  whole  to  be  heated  to  1 04°  Fahr.  A  thermometer  is  now  inserted  in  the  watei 
bath  (in  which  the  glass  jars  are  placed)  which  is  heated  slow  enough  for  the  water 
not  to  reach  167°  Fahr.  until  an  hour  and  a  half  after  the  samples  have  been  in- 
troduced, as  above  stated ;  avoiding  carefully  variations  of  temperature.  At  the 
expiration  of  the  hour  and  a  half,  the  temperature  is  raised,  and  the  water  bath  is 
made  to  boil  for  half  an  hour.  The  samples  are  now  taken  out,  rinsed  in  cold 
water,  and  dried.  Each  sample  is  then  cut  in  two ;  one  half  is  preserved  as  it  is, 
and  the  other  half  is  subjected  to  the  following  clearings: — A  soap  bath  at  122° 
Fahr.  is  first  given.  This  bath  is  made  up  with  2|  grammes  (38£  grains  Troy)  of 
white  soap,  to  each  litre  (2£  wine  pints)  of  water.  After  it  has  been  half  an  hour 
in  this  bath,  it  is  to  be  carefully  rinsed  in  cold  water.  A  fresh  soap  bath  is  now 
given,  to  which  is  added  half  a  gramme  (1\  grains  Troy)  of  salt  of  tin,  and  is 
kept  at  the  boiling  point  for  half  an  hour.  It  is  then  washed  and  rinsed.  The 
samples  are  now  to  be  dried  with  care  and  preserved  from  the  light.  * 

When  a  series  of  tints  of  two  different  states  have  been 
thus  prepared,  that  is  to  say,  a  dye  with  and  without  clearing, 
it  is  very  easy  to  ascertain  the  comparative  value  of  an  un- 
known madder.  Whatever  vegetable  powders  may  have  been 
fraudulently  introduced  into  the  madders,  whether  tinctorial 
or  inert,  they  can  never  lead  to  error  as  to  the  true  tinctorial 
value  of  the  mixture,  inasmuch  as  the  colors  which  they  af- 
ford, and  which  saturate  the  mordants  at  the  same  time  as 
the  red  principle  of  the  madder,  cannot  withstand  the  action 
of  the  clearings  as  the  latter  does  ;  they  run,  as  is  said,  in  the 
soap  and  tin  baths,  and  in  the  end  there  only  remains  the  col- 
or from  the  madder  upon  the  cloth.  The  clearings,  are,  there- 
fore, necessary  to  show  the  solidity  and  vivacity  of  the  tints 
obtained. 

The  foregoing  test  with  samples  of  calico,  is  that  which  has 


*  A  centimetre  is  the  hundredth  part  of  a  metre,  the  metre  being  39  \  inches 
English, 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  119 


been  employed  in  France  since  1831.  It  differs  very  little 
from  the  method  published  in  1835,  by  M.  H.  Schlumberger, 
of  Mulhausen.* 

3.  Determination  of  the  quantity  of  the  coloring  prin- 
ciple.— M.  Giradin  gives  us  the  following  method,  which,  he 
says,  he  has  been  long  accustomed  to  employ :—  50  grammes, 
(3872i  grains  Troy)  are  diluted  with  50  grammes  of  concen- 
trated sulphuric  acid.  The  whole  is  left  in  contact  for  some 
hours :  too  high  a  temperature  should  be  avoided ;  the  char- 
coal obtained  is  mixed  with  water,  and  thrown  upon  a  filter ; 
it  is  then  washed  until  the  water  passes  through  quite  insipid  ; 
and  next  dried  at  a  temperature  of  212°  Fahr.,  in  Gay-Lus- 
sac's  water  bath.  This  charcoal  is  reduced  to  a  fine  powder, 
and  macerated  for  two  hours  at  three  distinct  intervals,  with 
cold  alcohol  containing  a  little  ether,  in  order  to  free  it  from 
a  fatty  matter  which  it  retains.  The  madder  is  boiled  in  al- 
cohol of  0-834,  at  three  different  intervals,  employing  each 
time  about  250  grammes  of  alcohol.  "When  this  is  no  longer 
colored  by  ebullition,  the  alcoholic  liquors  are  mixed,  and  dis- 
tilled in  a  small  glass  retort  to  the  consistence  of  a  syrup,  and 
the  concentration  of  the  liquid  completed  in  the  water  bath  in 
a  weighed  porcelain  crucible.  When  the  extract  is  perfectly 
dry,  its  weight  is  taken.  This  represents  the  proportion  of 
red  tinctorial  principle  contained  in  the  madder. 

This  process  is  rather  long ;  it  does  not  give,  especially  on 
a  small  scale,  the  absolute  proportion  of  coloring  principle 
contained  in  the  madder ;  there  is  a  slight  loss,  but  by  acting 
comparatively  a  sufficient  approximation  is  obtained.  Such 
are  the  methods  for  ascertaining  the  quality,  the  purity,  or 
the  adulteration,  of  madders  by  the  French.  In  most  cases, 
calcination  is  sufficient.  Calcination  and  the  test  by  dye- 
ing made  conjointly,  allow  the  practitioner  to  form  a  correct 
estimate  of  the  value  of  the  madders  submitted  for  examina- 
tion. 

Considering  the  minutiae,  and  the  number  of  operations 
which  it  is  necessary  to  have  recourse  to,  in  order  to  form  a 


*  Bulletin  de  la  Societe  Industrielle  de  Mulhausen,  VIII.  p.  300. 


120 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


just  estimate  of  the  relative  worth  of  madders,  it  is  evident 
that  an  examination  by  simply  looking  at  them,  as  is  cus- 
tomary with  the  merchants,  can  afford  no  precise  information, 
and  must,  indeed,  lead,  in  most  cases,  to  erroneous  conclu- 
sions. The  method  practiced  by  the  French  merchants  in 
testing  the  qualities  of  the  madders,  is,  to  spread  samples  of 
about  a  quarter  of  a  pound  side  by  side  on  a  clean  linen  cloth 
or  large  sheet  of  paper.  These  little  heaps  are  flattened  or 
rendered  smooth  on  the  top  with  an  ivory  spatula.  The  sam- 
ples are  then  placed  in  a  cellar,  or  some  moist  situation,  where 
they  are  kept  from  twelve  to  fifteen  hours.  At  the  expiration 
of  this  time  the  quality  is  judged  of  according  to  the  bright- 
ness and  tint  of  the  respective  samples. 

This  method  does  not,  however,  even  approximately  show 
the  richness  of  color  of  the  madders,  since  a  somewhat  long 
contact  with  the  air  is  sufficient  to  render  them  darker,  and 
many  circumstances  may  change  their  tint,  without  thereby 
causing  their  tinctorial  value  to  vary.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  old  madders,  of  a  dull  tint,  may  be  far  superior  to  new 
ones  of  a  more  beautiful  color.  The  merchants  and  brokers 
method  of  trial  often  places  the  manufacturer  in  a  false  po- 
sition, by  obliging  him  to  brighten  the  tint  of  his  powders,  in 
order  to  make  them  more  saleable,  and  that  sometimes  to  the 
injury  of  the  tinctorial  power ;  thus  facilitating  the  adultera- 
tion of  the  madders  by  mixture  with  foreign  substances,  suit- 
ably colored  and  pulverized,  which  serve  to  heighten  the  tint 
of  the  powder ;  and  it  is  impossible  to  ascertain  the  presence 
of  these  mixtures  by  exposure  in  the  cellar. 

M.  Giradin  purposely  made  a  mixture  of  madder,  mahog- 
any, and  sandal  wood,  in  known  proportions,  and  this  mix- 
ture when  submitted  to  merchants,  who  thought  themselves 
very  skillful  in  the  estimation  of  the  value  of  madders  by  the 
foregoing  process,  was  considered  by  them  to  be  pure  madder 
of  first  quality  ! 

N. 

NICARAGUA-WOOD. — (See  Brazil-wood.) 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


121 


P. 

PEACHWOOD.— (See  Brazil-wood.) 

Q 

QUERCITRON,  is  the  inner  bark  of  a  tree  (the  Quercus 
nigra  of  botanists).  Its  dyeing  properties  were  first  made 
known  by  Dr.  Bancroft,  in  1784.  Two  years  after,  he  ob- 
tained an  act  of  parliament,  vesting  in  him  the  exclusive  use 
and  application  of  it  for  a  certain  term  of  years.  This  dye 
drug  contains  a  good  deal  of  tannin,  and  a  yellow  coloring 
matter  which  has  got  the  name  of  Quercitrin.  It  is  crystal- 
ine,  and  has  a  pearly  lustre.  Bark  was  extensively  used  in 
the  dye-house  for  many  years  for  the  purpose  of  dyeing  yel- 
low, and  almost  completely  superseded  the  use  of  fustic  both 
from  its  beauty  and  also  its  cheapness ;  but  its  use  for  that 
purpose  has  been  superseded  by  the  bichromate  of  potash* 
Its  principal  use  now  in  the  best  French  as  well  as  English 
and  Scotch  establishments,  is  to  form  the  ground  for  browns, 
and  for  dyeing  green  upon  light  muslin  cloth. 

The  quantity  of  tannin  combined  with  this  wood,  makes  it 
very  useful  for  olives;  goods  impregnated  with  iron,  and 
passed  through  a  decoction  of  bark  take  a  beautiful  olive. 
The  proper  mordant  for  this  dye  is  pyrolignite  of  alumina. 
Alum  and  chloride  of  tin  make  also  an  excellent  mordant. 
In  dyeing  greens  upon  cotton  cloth,  the  goods  are  impreg- 
nated with  pyrolignite  of  alumina,  and  then  put  through  a 
decoction  of  the  bark :  but  in  dyeing  light  shades  of  green, 
much  attention  must  be  paid  to  the  preparation  of  the  decoc- 
tion. This  is  made  by  pouring  boiling  water  upon  the  bark. 
If  deep  dark  greens  are  wanted,  this  method  is  best ;  but  if 
light  greens  be  wanted,  the  water  should  not  be  above  86°  or 
90°  Fahr. ;  at  this  heat  there  is  only  the  finest  yellow  color- 
ing matter  dissolved ;  but  by  a  higher  temperature  the  tan 
and  other  matters  are  dissolved,  and  the  color  obtained  be- 

*  See  chapter  IV.  Part  III.,  article  Processes  of  Dying  Yellow;  see  also  chapter 
VI.  Part  III.,  article  Processes  of  Dyeing  Orange. 

16 


122  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

comes  more  or  less  brown.  This  peculiarity,  however,  makes 
it  better  as  an  ingredient  in  browns,  olives,  &c.  For  further 
information  upon  this  subject,  the  reader  must  consult  the 
processes  described  in  the  body  of  the  work,  for  obtaining  the 
colors  above  referred  to,  all  of  which  are  noticed  in  the  index. 
— (See  chapter  IX.  Part  III.,  article  Browns  with  Quercitron 
Bark.) 

R. 

REDWOOD. — (See  Barwood.) 

s. 

SAFFLOWER. — This  is  an  annual  plant,  cultivated  in 
Spain,  Egypt,  and  the  Levant.  There  are  two  varieties  of  it, 
one  having  large  leaves,  and  the  other  smaller  ones  ;  the  last 
is  the  best.  It  is  only  the  flower  of  this  plant  that  is  used  for 
dyeing.  When  the  flowers  are  gathered,  they  are  squeezed 
between  two  stones  to  express  their  juice ;  they  are  afterwards 
washed  with  spring  water ;  next  taken  in  small  quantities 
and  pressed  between  the  hands  and  laid  out  upon  mats  to 
dry.  These  cakes  are  covered  up  during  the  day  to  prevent 
the  sun  from  shining  upon  them — which  would  not  only  de- 
stroy the  color,  but  dry  the  cakes  too  much,  and  thereby 
cause  further  deterioration.  They  are  kept  exposed  to  the 
dews  of  night,  and  turned  over  occasionally  till  properly  dried, 
when  they  are  packed  up  for  the  market.  It  is  in  this  state 
they  are  procured  by  the  dyer. — (See  chapter  III.  Part  III., 
article  Safflower  Pink  ;  see  also  chapter  V.  Part  III.,  article 
Safflower  and  Prussian  Blue,  and  chapter  III.  Part  V.,  arti- 
cle Pinks,  Crimsons,  Roses,  fyc,  with  Safflower.) 

SANDAL  or  RED  SAUNDERS  WOOD,  is  the  wood  of 
the  Pterocarpus  santalinus,  a  tree  which  grows  in  Ceylon, 
and  on  the  coast  of  Coromandel.  The  old  wood  is  preferred 
by  dyers,  who  use  it  pretty  extensively,  at  present,  for  browns. 
Its  coloring  matter  is  of  a  resinous  nature ;  and  is,  therefore, 
quite  soluble  in  alcohol,  essential  oils,  and  alkaline  leys ;  but 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  123 

sparingly  in  boiling  water,  and  hardly  if  at  all  in  cold  water. 
The  coloring  matter  which  is  obtained  by  evaporating  the 
alcoholic  infusion  to  dryness,  has  been  called  santaline  ;  it  is 
a  red  resin,  which  is  fusible  at  212°  F.  It  may  also  be  ob- 
tained by  digesting  the  rasped  sandal  wood  in  water  of  am- 
monia, and  afterwards  saturating  the  ammonia  with  an  acid. 
The  santaline  falls,  and  the  supernatant  liquor,  which  is  yel- 
low by  transmitted  light,  appears  blue  by  reflected  light.  Its 
spirituous  solution  affords  a  fine  purple  precipitate  with  the 
protochloride  of  tin,  and  a  violet  one  with  the  salts  of  lead. 
Santaline  is  very  soluble  in  acetic  acid,  and  the  solution  forms 
permanent  stains  upon  the  skin. 

Sandal  wood  is  used  in  India,  along  with  one-tenth  of 
sapan  wood  (the  Caisalpinia  sapan  of  Japan,  Java,  Siam, 
Celebes,  and  the  Philippine  isles),  principally  for  dyeing  silk 
and  cotton.  Trommsdorf  dyed  wool,  cotton,  and  linen,  a  car- 
mine hue  by  dipping  them  alternately  in  alkaline  solution  of 
the  sandal  wood,  and  in  an  acidulous  bath.  Bancroft  ob- 
tained a  fast  and  brilliant  reddish-yellow,  by  preparing  wool 
with  an  alum  and  tartar  bath,  and  then  passing  it  through  a 
boiling  bath  of  sandal  wood  and  sumac.  Pelletier  did  not 
succeed  in  repeating  this  experiment.  According  to  Yogler, 
wool,  silk,  cotton,  and  linen,  mordanted  with  salt  of  tin,  and 
dipped  in  a  cold  alcoholic  tincture  of  the  wood,  or  the  same 
tincture  mixed  with  8  parts  of  boiling  water,  become  of  a 
superb  ponceau-red  color.  With  alum  they  took  a  scarlet- 
red  ;  with  sulphate  of  iron,  a  deep  violet,  or  brown-red.*  Un- 
luckily these  dyes  do  not  stand  exposure  to  light  well. 

SAPAN  WOOD,  is  a  species  of  the  Ccesalpinia  genus,  to 
which  Brazil-wood  belongs.  It  is  so  called  by  the  French, 
because  it  comes  to  them  from  Japan.  As  all  the  species  of 
this  tree  are  natives  of  either  the  East  Indies  or  America, 
one  would  imagine  that  they  could  not  have  been  used  as 
dye-stuffs  in  Europe  before  the  beginning  of  the  16th  cen- 
tury. Yet  the  author  of  the  article  "  Brazil,"  in  Rees's  Cy^ 
clopaedia,  and  Mr.  Southey,  in  his  History  of  Brazil,  say  that 


*  Crell's  Annals,  1790. 


124 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Brazil  wood  is  mentioned  nearly  one  hundred  years  before 
the  discoveries  of  Columbus  and  Vasco  de  Gama,  by  Chau- 
cer, who  died  in  1400  ;  that  it  was  known  many  ages  before 
his  time ;  and  that  it  gave  the  name  to  the  country,  instead 
of  the  country  giving  the  name  to  the  wood. — (See  Brazil- 
loood.) 

SUMAC,  is  the  powder  of  the  leaves,  peduncles,  and 
young  branches  of  the  Rhus  coriaria,  and  Rhus  cotinus, 
shrubs  which  grow  in  Hungary,  the  Bannat,  and  the  Illyrian 
provinces.  Both  kinds  contain  tannin,  with  a  little  yellow 
coloring  matter,  and  are  a  good  deal  employed  for  tanning 
light-colored  leathers ;  but  the  first  or  the  Rhus  coriaria,  is 
the  best.  With  peroxide  of  iron  as  the  mordant,  it  imparts  a 
variety  of  shades  from  slate  color  to  black.  In  calico-printing 
sumac  affords,  with  a  mordant  of  tin,  a  yellow  color  ;  and 
with  sulphate  of  zinc  a  brownish  yellow.  A  decoction  of 
sumac  reddens  litmus  paper  strongly;  gives  white  flocks 
with  the  proto-muriate  of  tin  ;  pale  yellow  flocks  with  alum  ; 
blue  flocks  with  red  sulphate  of  iron,  with  an  abundant  pre- 
cipitate. 

Almost  all  vegetables  contain,  especially  in  their  bark,* 
more  or  less  coloring  matter,  capable  of  affording  dun  hues, 
inclining  to  yellow,  brown,  red  or  green.  These  coloring 
matters  present  greater  or  less  differences  among  each  other, 
in  reference  to  their  quantity  and  quality ;  they  further  vary 
according  to  climate  and  the  age  of  the  vegetable.  A  great 
diversity  of  shades,  therefore,  may  be  procured,  by  modifying 
the  dun  natural  to  the  vegetables,  by  means  of  different  mor- 
dants. This  has  been  accomplished  by  Siefferts,t  and  parti- 
cularly by  D'Ambourney.t  Thus  in  a  great  many  exper- 
iments which  the  latter  made,  employing  the  parts  of  differ- 
ent vegetables,  and  using  different  mordants,  the  colors 
which  he  produced  were,  for  the  most  part,  between  yellow 
and  brown,  such  as  carmelites,  olives,  cinnamons,  and  ma- 


*  See  chapter  II.,  Part  III.     t  Versuche  mit  einheinmischen  farbe  materien. 
}  Recueil  des  procedeset  d'experienccs  sur  les  teintures  solides,  que  nos  vegetaux 
indigenes  communiquient  aux  laines  et  aux  lainages. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  125 

rones.  The  decoction  of  the  greater  part  of  vegetables,  and 
especially  of  barks,  affords  a  color  differing  only  in  shade, 
and  exhibits  with  reagents  nearly  the  same  characters.  The 
decoction  of  walnut  peels,  however,  produces  a  peculiar  effect 
with  solutions  of  iron  ;  it  assumes  a  very  deep  color,  but  no 
precipitate  is  formed  even  after  two  or  three  days.  Their  de- 
coction, as  well  as  that  of  walnut  tree  bark,  has  a  powerful 
action  on  oxide  of  iron ;  it  saturates  it,  forming  a  black  li- 
quor ;  and  even  if  filings  of  iron  be  put  into  this  decoction 
exposed  to  the  air,  in  two  or  three  days  it  forms  a  black  li- 
quor by  means  of  the  oxygen  which  it  attracts  from  the  at- 
mosphere. But  if  a  decoction  to  which  solution  of  sulphate 
of  iron  has  been  added,  be  boiled,  an  abundant  black  deposit 
instantly  falls.  It  is  therefore  evident,  that  it  is  only  in  a  tri- 
fling circumstance  that  walnut  peels  as  well  as  walnut-tree 
bark,  differ  from  the  other  substances  which  yield  a  dun 
color  ;  yet  its  extractive  matter  possesses  in  particular  the 
property  of  becoming  black  by  the  action  of  the  air,  and  the 
pellicles  formed  when  it  is  evaporated,  assume  in  a  very 
marked  degree  the  appearances  of  a  carbonized  substance. 

If  the  yellow  color  produced  by  several  vegetable  substances 
be  compared  with  the  dun  which  most  of  them  afford,  a  close 
relation  will  be  found  between  these  colors.  There  are  even 
some  which  may  be  referred  equally  to  yellow  and  to  dun. 
As  the  dun  shades  obtained  from  different  substances  vary 
to  a  great  extent,  sometimes  several  of  these  substances  are 
blended  in  order  to  obtain  a  peculiar  color,  and  that  in  dif- 
ferent proportions.*  Other  ingredients  are  also  mixed  with 
them,  to  modify  their  color  and  to  render  it  faster.  Among 
these  substances  there  is  none  more  worthy  of  attention,  than 
that  of  sandal  or  red  saunders  wood,  just  described. — (See 
chapters  I.,  II.,  III.,  and  IX.,  Part  III. ;  see  also  chapter  IV., 
Part  IV.,  and  chapter  L,  Part  V.) 


*  Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.,  p.  264. 


126  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

T. 

TURMERIC  is  the  root  of  the  Curcuma  longa  and  ro- 
tunda, a  plant  which  grows  in  the  East  Indies,  where  it  is 
much  employed  in  dyeing  yellow,  as  also  as  a  condiment  in 
curry  sauce  or  powder.  The  root  is  knotty,  tubercular,  ob- 
long, and  wrinkled ;  pale-yellow  without,  and  brown-yellow 
within ;  of  a  peculiar  smell,  a  taste  bitterish  and  somewhat 
spicy.  It  contains  a  peculiar  yellow  principle,  called  curcu- 
mine,  a  brown  coloring  matter,  a  volatile  oil,  starch,  (fee. 
The  yellow  tint  of  turmeric  is  changed  to  brown-red  by  alka- 
lies, alkaline  earths,  subacetate  of  lead,  and  several  metallic 
oxides ;  for  which  reason,  paper  stained  with  it  is  employed 
as  a  chemical  test.  Turmeric  is  employed  by  the  wool-dyers 
for  compound  colors  which  require  an  admixture  of  yellow,  as 
for  cheap  browns  and  olives.  As  a  yellow  dye,  it  is  employed 
only  upon  silk.  It  is  a  very  fugitive  color.  A  yellow  lake 
may  be  made  by  boiling  turmeric  powder  with  a  solution  of 
alum,  and  pouring  the  filtered  decoction  upon  pounded  chalk. 

TURNSOLE. — (See  Archil,  and  Litmus.) 

w. 

WELD  is  an  annual  herbaceous  plant,  which  grows  all 
over  Europe,  called  by  botanists  Reseda  luteola.  The  stems 
and  the  leaves  dye  yellow ;  and  among  the  dyes  of  organic 
nature,  they  rank  next  to  the  Persian  berry  for  the  beauty 
and  fastness  of  color.  The  whole  plant  is  cropped  when  in 
seed,  at  which  period  its  dyeing  power  is  greatest ;  and  after 
being  simply  dried,  is  brought  into  the  market.  Chevreul  has 
discovered  a  yellow  coloring  principle  in  weld,  which  he  has 
called  luteoline.  It  may  be  sublimed,  and  thus  obtained  in 
long  needle-form,  transparent,  yellow  crystals.  Luteoline  is 
but  sparingly  soluble  in  water;  but  it  nevertheless  dyes 
alumed  silk  and  wool  of  a  fine  jonquil  color.  It  is  soluble  in 
alcohol  and  ether  ;  it  combines  with  acids,  and  especially  with 
bases.    When  weld  is  to  be  employed  in  the  dye-bath,  it 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


127 


should  be  boiled  for  three  quarters  of  an  hour ;  after  which 
the  exhausted  plant  is  taken  out,  because  it  occupies  too 
much  room.  The  decoction  is  rapidly  decomposed  in  the  air, 
and  ought  therefore  to  be  made  only  when  it  is  wanted.  It 
produces  the  following  results  :  with — 

Solution  of  isin-glass     ....    a  slight  turbidity. 

Litmus  paper  a  faint  reddening. 

Potash  ley  a  golden  yellow  tint. 

Solution  of  alum    ....       .a  faint  yellow. 

Protoxide  salts  of  tin  .       .       .a  rich  yellow  \ 

Acetate  of  lead      .....  ditto  >  precipitation. 

Salts  of  copper      .       .       .       .       .a  dirty  yellow-brown ) 

Sulphate  of  red  oxide  of  iron       .       .    a  brown,  passing  into  olive. 

Mr.  Partridge,  an  English  dye  stuff  dealer,  34  Cliff  street, 
New  York,  is,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  extract  from 
his  book  on  dyeing,  completely  in  love  with  weld  as  a  tincto- 
rial substance.  This  dyewood  is  indeed,  as  every  practical 
man  knows,  of  great  value ;  but  nevertheless,  we  are  not  pre- 
pared to  go  to  the  same  extent  in  its  praise,  that  Mr.  Par- 
tridge has  : — "  The  color  obtained  from  weld,"  says  he,  "  is 
more  permanent,  with  the  common  mordants  alum  and  tar- 
tar, than  any  other  yellow  dye.  The  color  it  gives  is  also 
more  delicate  than  any  other ;  but  its  chief  superiority  con- 
sists in  the  property  it  possesses,  in  a  very  superior  degree,  of 
imparting  a  great  degree  of  softness  to  the  woolens  dyed 
with  it.  Our  manufacturers  cannot  but  be  aware  of  the  ad- 
vantage of  using  such  dyes  as  will  give  a  softness  to  their 
wool,  in  preference  to  others,  which  from  astringency  have 
the  effect  of  giving  a  harsh  feeling  to  their  fabrics.  So  much 
are  European  wool  dyers  impressed  with  the  superiority  of 
weld  over  any  other  yellow  dye,  that  they  use  it  in  all  furnace 
colors  that  will  admit  of  it,  though  it  costs  them  ?nore  than 
double  the  price  of  other  dyes,  for  which  it  is  substituted. 
The  drabs  dyed  with  weld  are  more  permanent,  and  the 
colors  more  delicate  than  from  any  other  yellow.  The  olive- 
browns  and  greens,  and  the  bronze  greens,  are  in  every  way 
superior,  as  it  respects  their  brilliancy  and  permanency. 
When  used  for  wool  colors,  the  wool  is  found  to  work  softer 


128 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


and  oetter  in  every  subsequent  operation."*  Great  improve- 
ments in  the  art  of  dyeing  have  been  made  in  England,  since 
Mr.  Partridge  left.  Indeed,  one  cannot  always  know  the  ex- 
tent of  these  improvements,  without  devoting  much  time, 
money,  and  last,  though  not  least,  talent,  to  the  subject.  Old 
Yorkshire  dyers  have  of  late  years  been  completely  driven  out 
of  the  market,  and  their  places,  in  many  instances,  supplied 
by  Frenchmen. — (See  chapters  I.,  II.,  and  IV.,  Part  III. : 
see  also  chapters  II.  and  III.,  Part  IV.,  and  chapter  II.. 
Part  V.) 

WOAD,  the  glastum  of  the  ancient  Gauls  and  Germans, 
is  an  herbaceous  plant  which  was  formerly  much  cultivated, 
as  affording  a  permanent  blue  dye,  but  it  has  been  in  mod- 
ern times  well  nigh  superseded  by  indigo.  Pliny  says,  "  A 
certain  plant  which  resembles  plantago,  called  glastum,  is 
employed  by  the  women  and  girls  in  Great  Britain  for  dyeing 
their  bodies  all  over,  when  they  assist  at  certain  religious  cer- 
emonies ;  they  have  then  the  color  of  Ethiopians.f"  When 
the  arts,  which  had  perished  with  the  Roman  empire,  were 
revived,  in  the  middle  ages,  woad  began  to  be  generally  used 
for  dyeing  blue,  and  became  an  object  of  most  extensive  cul- 
tivation in  many  countries  of  Europe.  The  environs  of  Tou- 
louse and  Mirepoix,  in  Upper  Languedoc,  produced  annually 
40,000,000  pounds  of  the  prepared  woad,  or  pastel,  of  which 
200,000  bales  were  consumed  at  Bordeaux.  Beruni,  a  rich 
manufacturer  of  this  drug,  became  surety  for  the  payment  of 
the  ransom  of  his  king,  Francis  I.,  then  the  prisoner  of  Charles 
V.  in  Spain. 

"  The  leaves  of  woad,"  says  Berthollet,  "  are  furnished  at 
their  edges  with  small  smooth  indentations,  and  of  a  bluish- 
green  color.  The  flowers  are  yellow,  disposed  in  panicles  at 
the  summits  of  the  stems.  The  root  is  thick,  woody,  and 
penetrates  deeply  into  the  earth.  For  its  cultivation  it  re- 
quires a  good  black  mould,  light,  and  well  improved.  It  is 
sown  in  spring,  after  a  double  tillage  in  autumn.  Three  or 
four  crops  are  obtained  in  a  year.    The  first  when  the  stems 


*  Partridge  on  dyeing,  p.  48. 


t  Hist.  Nat.  cap.  XXII.  §  2. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  129 

begin  to  grow  yellow,  and  the  flowers  are  about  to  appear ; 
the  others  at  successive  intervals  of  six  weeks  or  more,  ac- 
cording to  the  climate  and  heat  of  the  season.  The  plant  is 
mown  with  a  scythe,  washed  in  the  river,  and  dried  in  the 
sun.  Its  desiccation  must  be  rapidly  performed ;  as,  if  the 
season  be  unfavorable,  or  if  it  rains,  the  plant  runs  a  risk  of 
being  spoiled.  A  single  night  is  sometimes  sufficient  to  turn 
it  black."* 

The  leaves  are  carried  to  the  mill  to  be  ground  into  paste, 
and  then  piled  in  heaps  to  ferment,  in  order  that  certain  vege- 
table principles  injurious  to  the  beauty  of  the  dye,  may  be 
destroyed ;  as  well  as  to  elaborate  the  indigoferous  matter 
present,  before  they  are  brought  into  the  market ;  but  they 
should  be  carefully  watched  during  this  process.  Whenever 
the  leaves  have  arrived  at  maturity,  a  point  judged  of  very 
differently  in  different  countries,  they  are  stripped  of  the  plant, 
a  cropping  which  is  repeated  as  often  as  they  shoot,  being 
three  or  four  times  in  Germany,  and  eight  or  ten  times  in 
Italy.  The  leaves  are  dried  as  quickly  as  possible,  but  not  so 
much  as  to  become  black ;  and  they  are  ground  before  they 
get  quite  dry.  The  resulting  paste  is  laid  upon  a  sloping 
pavement,  with  gutters  for  conducting  the  juice,  which  exudes 
into  a  tank ;  the  heap  being  trampled  from  time  to  time,  to 
promote  the  discharge  of  the  juice  The  woad  ferments, 
swells,  and  cracks  in  many  places,  which  fissures  must  be 
closed  ;  the  whole  being  occasionally  watered.  The  fermen- 
tation is  continued  for  twenty  or  thirty  days,  in  cold  weather ; 
and  if  the  leaves  have  been  gathered  dry,  as  in  Italy,  for  four 
months.  When  the  fermented  heap  has  become  moderately 
dry,  it  is  ground  again,  and  put  up  in  cakes  of  from  one  to 
three  pounds  ;  which  are  then  fully  dried,  and  packed  up  in 
bundles  for  the  market.  Many  dyers  subject  the  pastel  to  a 
second  fermentation. 

1,600  square  toises  (fathoms)  of  land  afford  in  two  cuttings 
at  least  19,000  pounds  of  leaves,  of  which  weight  four-fifths 
are  lost  in  the  fermentation,  leaving  3,880  pounds  of  pastel,  in 


*  Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  55. 

17 


130 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


cakes.  When  good,  it  has  rather  a  yellow,  or  greenish-yel- 
low, than  a  blue  color ;  it  is  light,  and  slightly  humid ;  it 
gives  to  paper  a  pale-green  trace ;  and  improves  by  age,  in 
consequence  of  an  obscure  fermentation ;  for  if  kept  four 
years,  it  dyes  twice  as  much  as  after  two  years.  Pastel 
affords,  without  indigo,  a  blue  color  which  has  no  brilliancy, 
but  is  very  durable.  Woad  differs  from  ordinary  pastel,  mere- 
ly in  requiring  a  larger  quantity  of  it  to  produce  a  like 
effect. 

Astruc  relates,  in  his  memoirs  on  the  natural  history  of 
Languedoc,  that  having  treated  pastel  in  the  small  way  as 
the  anil  is  treated  to  obtain  indigo,  he  procured  a  powder 
which  produced  the  same  effects  as  indigo.  Hellot  thence 
concluded,  that  the  deep  green  of  several  plants  is  owing  to 
yellow  and  blue  particles,  and  that,  if  by  fermentation  the 
yellow  could  be  destroyed,  the  blue  would  remain.*  But 
Lewis  says,  that  having  made  different  species  of  plants 
putrefy  in  water,  he  obtained  no  blue  fecula.  "  This  mixture 
of  blue  and  yellow  molecules,"  says  he,  "  to  form  the  green 
of  plants,  is  a  supposition  void  of  foundation."!  Several 
attempts  have  been  made  in  different  places  to  extract  an 
indigo  from  pastel.  It  appears  that  the  product  is  too  small 
for  the  coloring  substance  to  enter  into  competition  with 
ordinary  indigo. 

Gren,  gives  us  the  following  description,  with  emendations, 
of  the  process  by  which  indigo,  or  blue  coloring  matter,  is 
obtained  from  pastel : — The  fresh  leaves  of  pastel  are  taken 
and  washed,  to  separate  the  impurities  and  the  earth.  They 
are  then  put  in  an  oblong  tub,  or  vat,  nearly  three-fourths  full 
of  water,  and  to  prevent  the  leaves  from  being  buoyed  up, 
pieces  of  wood  are  fixed  across  on  the  top.  The  vessel  is 
now  to  be  moderately  heated.  The  froth  on  the  surface  in- 
dicates the  commencement  of  fermentation.  But  this  indica- 
tion will  not,  of  course,  make  its  appearance  for  several  days, 
being  governed  by  the  degree  of  heat  applied,  which  must  be 


*  See  chapter  II.,  Part  I. 

t  The  Chemical  Works  of  Gaspar  Neumann,  by  William  Lewis. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


131 


extremely  slight,  or  the  temperature  of  the  atmosphere. 
Whenever  there  is  a  certain  quantity  of  this  froth,  the  liquor, 
which  should  be  of  a  deep  green  tint,  is  drawn  off  into  an- 
other oblong  tub  or  vat,  by  means  of  a  stopcock  near  the 
bottom ;  and  in  doing  this  the  liquor  should  be  strained 
through  a  cloth,  in  order  to  separate  its  impurities,  or  the 
fragments  of  leaves  which  might  pass  over. 

The  leaves  are  now  to  be  washed  with  a  little  cold  water, 
to  detach  the  portions  of  coloring  matter  which  may  adhere 
to  them,  and  this  washing  is  to  be  added  to  the  liquor  which 
has  been  drawn  off.  As  soon  as  this  is  accomplished,  lime 
water  is  poured  into  the  liquor  in  the  proportion  of  from  two 
to  three  pounds  for  every  ten  pounds  of  leaves.  The  mixture 
is  then  strongly  agitated  to  facilitate  the  separation  of  the 
indigo,  which  is  precipitated,  or  falls  down  to  the  bottom  of 
the  vessel.  To  ascertain  if  the  agitation  has  been  continued 
long  enough,  a  portion  of  the  clear  liquor  is  put  into  a  bottle, 
on  shaking  which,  it  will  be  seen  whether  the  blue  matter 
has  been  fully  separated  ;  and  if  not,  the  liquor  must  be  agi- 
tated anew.  When  the  indigo,  or  blue  matter,  has  been  fully 
extracted,  the  liquor  in  the  bottle  will  have  a  yellowish  cast. 
As  soon  as  the  indigo,  or  blue  precipitate,  has  fairly  settled, 
the  yellow  liquor  should  be  drawn  off,  by  means  of  the  stop- 
cock, which  is  placed  a  sufficient  distance  from  the  bottom  to 
prevent  the  blue  matter  from  being  drawn  off  with  the  water. 
In  doing  this,  drawing  off  the  yellow  liquor,  the  vat  may  be 
canted  a  little  to  one  side,  to  facilitate  the  operation.  The 
coloring  matter  is  then  poured  into  conical  niters  of  linen 
cloth,  or  into  large  filtering  bags,  into  which  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  water  is  thrown  for  the  purpose  of  freeing  it  from 
impurities.  It  is  then  dried  by  a  gentle  artificial  heat,  taking 
care  to  cover  it  up. 

The  blue  matter  may  be  obtained  without  the  addition  of 
the  lime,  but  not  in  such  abundance.  If,  however,  a  larger 
quantity  of  lime  water  be  added,  more  blue  matter  is  ob- 
tained, but  its  quality  is  inferior ;  because  the  surplus  of  the 
calcareous  earth  unites  with  the  indigo.  Alkalies  likewise 
facilitate  the  separation  of  the  blue  matter;  but  it  is  not 


132 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


advantageous  to  employ  them,  because  they  afterwards  dis- 
solve a  portion  of  the  blue  substance.  With  the  addition  of 
an  acid  no  precipitate  takes  place. 

A  certain  time  must  elapse  before  it  is  proper  to  draw  off 
the  water.  If  it  be  run  off  too  soon,  but  little  indigo  is  ob- 
tained ;  if,  on  the  contrary,  the  leaves  be  left  too  long  in  the 
infusion  with  the  water,  they  enter  easily  into  putrefaction, 
diffusing  a  fetid  and  peculiar  volatile  odor.  Thenceforth  no 
more  precipitate  can  be  separated,  and  the  water  remains 
permanently  green.  The  same  thing  happens  with  the 
water  drawn  off,  if  it  be  neglected ;  and,  even  when  the  in- 
digo is  already  separated  from  the  liquor,  care  should  be 
taken  that  this  do  not  putrefy.  We  must  not,  however,  be 
too  hasty  in  turning  the  water  out  of  the  first  vat  into  the 
second,  the  one  in  which  it  is  to  be  agitated,  on  the  first  ap- 
pearance of  the  skin  or  surface  changing  blue,  since  it  is  at  this 
moment  that  the  leaves  give  out  most  of  their  blue  matter. 

When  the  degree  of  the  atmospheric  heat  is  considerable, 
fermentation  is  speedily  established,  and  from  fifteen  to  eigh- 
teen hours  will,  in  most  cases,  be  sufficient.  It  is  especially 
requisite  then  to  be  very  attentive,  not  to  let  it  run  into  total 
putrefaction.  If  the  heat  of  the  atmosphere  be  too  low,  nei- 
ther much  froth  nor  blue  pellicle  will  be  perceived,  but  the  li- 
quor will  incline  gradually  to  putrefaction,  without  presenting 
any  marked  phenomena  before  its  commencement.  It  should 
be  remarked,  in  conclusion,  that  the  blue  matter  obtained 
from  pastel  should,  when  convenient,  be  dried  artificially,  as 
before  stated,  but  where  this  cannot  be  done,  it  may  be  dried 
in  the  shade,  because  the  sun  destroys  the  color.* 

According  to  Hellot,  4  pounds  of  Guatimala  indigo  pro- 
duced the  same  effect  as  210  pounds  of  the  pastel  of  Albi. 
At  Q,uins,  in  Piedmont,  the  dyers  estimate  that  6  pounds  of 
indigo  are  equivalent  to  300  of  pastel ;  but  Chaptal  thinks 
the  indigo  underrated.  Fresh  woad,  analyzed  by  Chevreul, 
afforded,  in  100  parts,  65*4  of  juice.    After  being  steeped  in 


*  Crell ;  Neueste  Entdeckungen.  A  translation  of  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  Bib- 
liotheque  Medico-Physique  du  Nord,  torn.  III. 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


133 


water,  the  remaining  mass  yielded,  on  expression  29*65  of 
liquid  ;  being  in  whole,  95-05  parts,  leaving  4*95  of  ligneous 
fibre.  The  juice,  by  filtration,  gave  1*95  of  green  fecula. 
100  parts  of  fresh  woad,  when  dried,  are  reduced  to  13*76 
parts.  Alcohol,  boiled  upon  dry  woad,  deposites,  after  cool- 
ing, indigo  in  microscopic  needles ;  but  these  cannot  be  sep- 
erated  from  the  vegetable  albumine,  which  retains  a  greenish- 
gray  color. 

Substitutes  for  Woad. — Messrs.  W.  G.  &  R.  Scarth,  of 
Leeds,  dyers,  "  prepare  a  substance  similar  to  that  obtained 
from  woad,  from  sumac,  peat,  oak-bark,  and  the  stalks  and 
stems  of  the  hop  plant."  Their  mode  of  operation  is  as 
follows  : — 

Any  given  quantity  of  sumac  of  commerce,  is  taken,  and 
sprinkled  with  water.  It  is  then  ground  and  placed  in  a 
heap  to  produce  fermentation,  in  like  manner  to  the  course 
pursued  with  the  preparation  of  woad  (as  stated  in  the  fore- 
going article) ;  commencing  with  that  part  of  its  process  at 
which  it  is  set  to  ferment,  and  the  results  of  such  fermenta- 
tion, when  sumac  is  the  material  operated  on,  will  be  so 
similar  to  the  like  fermentation  on  woad,  that  a  workman  ac- 
quainted with  the  preparation  of  that  substance,  will  readily 
judge  of  the  maturity  of  the  process,  and  when  it  is  ready  for 
the  dyer. 

In  using  peat  as  a  substitute  for  woad,  it  is  pulverized  pre- 
vious to  being  submitted  to  the  process  of  fermentation. 

In  applying  oak-bark,  or  the  stalks  and  stems  of  the  hop- 
plant,  they  are,  when  dry,  to  be  ground  into  a  powder,  which 
is  to  be  treated  in  a  similar  manner  to  the  powder  or  cakes 
prepared  from  woad.  The  material  thus  produced  will  then 
be  ready  for  the  dyer,  and  is  to  be  used  in  precisely  the  same 
manner  as  heretofore  pursued  when  using  the  fermented  pro- 
duct of  woad. 

EXTRACTING  COLORING  MATTER  FROM  DYE- 
WOODS. — The  coloring  matter  of  dye-woods,  may  be  ex- 
tracted with  great  advantage  by  means  of  steam,  by  causing 
it  to  pass  through  the  substance  to  be  operated  upon,  which 


134 


DYEING  AND  CALICO 


PRINTING. 


condenses  in  its  passage  and  extracts  the  color ;  it  is  then 
evaporated  to  any  consistency  at  the  pleasure  of  the  operator. 

The  apparatus  which  best  answers  the  purpose,  in  Eng- 
land, is  composed  of  a  steam  box  lined  with  lead,  and  covered 
by  a  shallow  metal  pan  ;  a  pipe  proceeding  from  a  boiler,  com- 
municates at  one  end  of  the  box  and  filling  it  with  steam, 
heats  the  pan  and  its  contents  in  the  course  of  the  process ; 
from  the  opposite  end  of  the  box  a  second  pipe  proceeds  up- 
wards through  the  bottom  of  a  wooden  chamber,  (that  is  lined 
with  glass  or  glazed  earthenware,)  to  the  distance  of  about 
one  foot  from  the  top,  the  lid  of  this  chamber  is  constructed 
so  as  to  allow  of  its  being  easily  opened,  and  when  closed,  to 
remain  steam-tight ;  a  quantity  of  chips  of  the  dye-wood 
being  put  in  at  the  top,  it  falls  on  a  false  bottom  of  perforated 
tin,  and  the  steam  being  admitted  into  the  steam  box,  will 
find  its  way  through  the  pipe  and  fill  the  space  that  is  left  in 
the  chamber ;  in  passing  downwards  through  the  dye-wood  it 
condenses,  and  dripping  on  the  real  bottom  of  the  chamber, 
which  is  placed  on  an  inclined  plane,  is  conveyed  from  thence 
by  a  small  pipe  to  the  shallow  pan  described.  In  this  situa- 
tion, the  liquor  may,  if  required,  be  evaporated  by  means  of 
the  steam  that  is  below  it, — even  to  powder  if  it  be  necessary. 
When  the  liquor  flowing  from  the  chamber  becomes  colorless, 
the  whole  of  the  dyeing  properties  of  the  wood  has  been  ex- 
tracted ;  the  chips,  which  will  be  found  bleached,  may  then 
be  removed  and  a  fresh  portion  operated  upon.  If  the  sub- 
stance employed  be  of  a  resinous  nature,  the  vapor  of  spirits 
of  wine  must  be  used  instead  of  the  steam  of  water. 

All  the  other  vegetable  dye-stuffs,  with  the  colors  which 
they  respectively  produce,  have  been  described  by  D'Am- 
bourney,  and  republished  by  Mr.  Cooper,  in  his  work  on  dye- 
ing. Those  of  our  friends  who  may  be  desirous  of  investi- 
gating the  subject,  but  who  have  not  Mr.  Cooper's  work,  are 
informed  that  it  was  published  at  Philadelphia,  in  the  year 
1815,  by  Thomas  Dobson,  41  South  Second  street,  where 
the  work  may  still,  for  aught  we  know  to  the  contrary,  be 
had.  The  accounts  of  these  coloring  substances  given  in  the 
various  dye  books,  and  works  on  domestic  economy,  of  the 


VEGETABLE  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  135 

present  day,  have,  in  ninety-nine  cases  out  of  a  hundred, 
been  copied,  verbatim,  et  ad  literatum,  from  D'Ambourney's 
table,  Berthollet,  and  such  books  as  Mackenzie's  "  Five  thou- 
sand Recipes." 

We  have  now  gone  over  the  principal  vegetable  dyeing 
agents  ;*  but  as  the  mineral  kingdom  has  in  some  instances 
superseded  the  vegetable,  we  shall  next  proceed  to  devote  a 
few  pages  to  substances  in  which  the  chemical  principles  of 
the  art  will  be  more  easily  developed. 


*  M.  Iwan  Shulumberger's  recent  communication  to  the  Societe  Industrielle  de 
Mulhausen  on  the  "Extraction  of  coloring  matter  from  Dye-woods"  contains 
nothing  new,  and  does  not  therefore  merit  a  place  in  this  work. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MINERAL   COLORING  SUBSTANCES  EMPLOYED  IN 
DYEING,  WITH  THEIR  PRINCIPAL  CHEMICAL 
CHARACTERS,  &c. 

Antimony- Orange — Arseniate  of  Chromium — Cadmium— Chrome- Yellow,  or  Chro- 
mate  of  Lead — Chrome-Orange,  or  Subchromate  of  Lead — Manganese-Brown— 
Orpiment — Peroxide  of  Iron — Prussiate  of  Copper — Prussian  Blue — Scheele's 
Green — Sulphuret  of  Cadmium.* 

A. 

ANTIMONY-ORANGE. — This  orange-red  substance  has 
been  applied  to  cloth  by  passing  the  piece  through  a  solution 
of  the  sulphuret  of  antimony  (1)  and  a  little  sulphur  in  a 
caustic  alkali,  and  afterwards  exposing  it  to  the  air  to  pre- 
cipitate the  sulphuret,  through  the  absorption  of  carbonic 
acid. 

1.  Antimony  readily  combines  with  sulphur,  and  forms  a 
gray  sulphuret  with  metallic  lustre.  The  same  compound 
is  found  in  nature.  It  may  be  melted  in  close  vessels  with- 
out undergoing  any  change ;  but  when  slowly  roasted  in  a 
shallow  vessel,  it  gradually  loses  sulphur  and  attracts  oxygen, 
and  may  then  be  melted  into  a  glassy  substance,  transparent 
at  the  edges,  and  called  glass  of  antimony.  It  consists  of 
eight  parts  of  protoxide,  and  one  of  sulphuret. 

Dr.  Thomas  Thomson,  of  Glasgow,  obtained  pure  anti- 
mony, by  dissolving  the  antimony  of  commerce  in  nitro- 


*  The  author  has  thought  it  advisable  to  give  in  these  headings  only  the  titles 
of  the  different  articles  contained  in  each  chapter  of  the  work,  to  avoid  confusion. 
For  a  more  complete  analysis,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  Index,  at  the  end  of  the 
work,  where  the  different  subjects  contained  under  each  of  these  titles,  are  more 
particularly  pointed  out. 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


137 


muriatic  acid,  and  precipitating  the  peroxide  by  means  of 
water.  This  oxide  was  well  washed,  dried,  mixed  with 
black  flux,  and  exposed  to  a  red  heat  in  a  covered  crucible. 
The  metallic  antimony  thus  obtained  was  exceedingly  soft, 
and  its  specific  gravity  was  only  6*424,  at  the  temperature 
of  60°.  This  is  somewhat  below  the  specific  gravity  of  this 
metal  usually  given  by  chemists. 

5*5  grains  of  this  antimony  were  put  into  a  platinum  cru- 
cible, and  dissolved  by  the  assistance  of  heat  in  nitric  acid. 
The  solution  was  evaporated  to  dryness,  and  exposed  for 
some  hours  to  a  heat  of  500°.  A  yellow  colored  powder  was 
thus  obtained,  possessing  the  properties  of  peroxide  of  anti- 
mony ;  it  weighed  7*5  grains.  Four  different  trials  made  by 
Dr.  Thomson  in  the  same  way,  gave  each  the  same  result. 
Thus  it  appears  that  peroxide  of  antimony  is  a  compound  of 

Antimony       .       .       5  5 

Oxygen  .       .  2 

7-5. 

ARSENIATE  (2)  OF  CHROMIUM.— This  is  a  fine 
grass-green  colored  compound,  which  may  be  imparted  to 
cloth,  by  the  application,  first  of  a  solution  of  chloride  of 
chromium,  (3)  and  afterwards  of  a  solution  of  arseniate  of 
soda.(4) 

2.  The  Arsenites  and  Arseniates  which  are  the  only 
soluble  compounds  of  the  arsenious  and  arsenic  acids  with 
the  salifiable  bases,  are  those  of  potash,  soda,  ammonia,  and 
probably  lithia ;  all  the  remainder  are  insoluble  in  water,  but 
are  taken  up  by  an  excess  of  their  own  acid,  and  still  more 
readily  by  nitric  acid. 

3.  Chromium  was  discovered  by  Yauquelin  in  1797.  The 
only  ore  of  this  metal,  which  occurs  in  sufficient  abundance 
for  the  purposes  of  art,  is  the  octohedral  chrome-ore,  com- 
monly called  chromate  of  iron,  though  it  is  rather  a  com- 
pound of  the  oxides  of  chromium  and  iron.  The  fracture 
of  this  mineral  is  uneven ;  its  lustre  imperfect  metallic ;  its 
color  between  iron-black  and  brownish-black,  and  its  streak 
brown.    Its  specific  gravity,  in  the  purest  state,  rises  to  4*5  ; 

18 


138 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


but  the  usual  chrome-ore  found  in  the  market  varies  from 
3  to  4.  According  to  Klaproth,  this  ore  consists  of  oxide 
of  chromium,  43  ;  protoxide  of  iron,  34*7 ;  alumina,  20*3 ; 
and  silica,  2 ;  but  Yauquelin's  analysis  of  another  specimen 
gave  as  above,  respectively,  55*5,  33,  6,  and  2.  It  is  infusible 
before  the  blowpipe  ;  but  it  acts  upon  the  magnetic  needle, 
after  having  been  exposed  to  the  reducing  smoky  flame.  It 
is  entirely  soluble  in  borax,  at  a  high  blowpipe  heat,  and 
imparts  to  it  a  beautiful  green  color.  The  chief  application 
of  this  ore  is  to  the  production  of  chromate  of  potash,  from 
which  salt  the  various  other  preparations  of  this  metal  used 
in  the  arts  are  obtained.  The  ore,  freed  as  well  as  possible, 
from  its  gangue,  is  reduced  to  a  fine  powder,  by  being  ground 
in  a  mill,  and  sifted.  It  is  then  mixed  with  one-third  or  one- 
half  its  weight  of  coarsely  bruised  nitre,  and  exposed  to  a 
powerful  heat,  for  several  hours,  on  a  reverberatory  hearth, 
where  it  is  stirred  about  occasionally.  In  large  manufacto- 
ries the  ignition  of  the  above  mixture  in  pots  is  laid  aside,  as 
too  operose  and  expensive.  The  calcined  matter  is  raked 
out,  and  lixiviated  with  water.  The  bright  yellow  solution 
is  then  evaporated  briskly,  and  the  chromate  of  potash  falls 
down  in  the  form  of  a  granular  salt,  which  is  lifted  out  from 
time  to  time  from  the  bottom  with  a  large  ladle,  perforated 
with  small  holes,  and  thrown  into  a  draining-box.  This 
saline  powder  may  be  formed  into  regular  crystals  of  neutral 
chromate  of  potash,  by  solution  in  water  and  slow  evapora- 
tion ;  or  it  may  be  converted  into  a  more  beautiful  crystaline 
body,  the  bichromate  of  potash,  by  treating  its  concentrated 
solution  with  nitric,  muriatic,  sulphuric,  or  acetic  acid,  or, 
indeed,  any  acid  exercising  a  stronger  affinity  for  the  second 
atom  of  the  potash  than  the  chromic  acid  does. 

4.  Arseniate  of  soda  is  obtained  with  great  ease  in  large 
crystals  ;  because  it  is  more  soluble  in  hot  than  in  cold  water. 
Mitcherlich  has  shown  that  the  crystals  have  the  same  form 
as  those  of  phosphate  of  soda  :  when  exposed  to  the  air  the 
salt  speedily  effervesces  on  the  surfaces,  but  does  not  fall  to 
powder ;  when  heated  it  undergoes  the  watery  fusion.  100 
parts  of  water  at  47°  dissolve  22-268  parts  of  this  salt. 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES.  139 

Dr.  Thomson  obtained  this  salt  by  mixing  solutions  of  7-75 
parts  of  arsenic  acid  and  18  of  crystalized  carbonate  of  soda. 
The  salt  formed  was  neutral,  and  the  liquid  yielded  crystals 
to  the  very  last  drop.  20*75  grains  of  the  crystals,  when 
heated,  lose  9  grains  of  water,  equivalent  to  8  atoms.  Hence 
the  constituents  of  the  salt  are  obviously 

1  atom  arsenic  acid    ....  7*75 
1  atom  soda  .       .       .       .  .4 

8  atoms  water  ....  9 

20-75 

c. 

CADMIUM.— (See  Sulphuret.) 

CHROME-YELLOW,  or  CHROMATE  OF  LEAD  (5). 
— The  color  of  this  pigment  is  bright  yellow;  it  may  be 
communicated  to  cloth  by  the  consecutive  application  of  solu- 
tions of  acetate  or  nitrate  of  lead  (6)  and  bichromate  of 
•potash  (7) ;  or  the  oxide  of  lead  may  be  first  fixed  on  the 
cloth  in  an  insoluble  state,  as  carbonate,  tartrate,  or  sulphate. 
It  consists  of  one  equivalent  of  chromic  acid  and  one  equiva- 
lent of  oxide  of  lead. 

5.  Chromate  of  lead,  the  chrome-yellow  of  the  painter,  is 
a  rich  pigment  of  various  shades,  from  deep  orange  to  the 
palest  canary  yellow.  It  is  made  by  adding  a  limpid  solu- 
tion of  the  neutral  chromate,  to  a  solution,  equally  limpid,  of 
acetate  or  nitrate  of  lead.  A  precipitate  falls,  which  must  be 
well  washed,  and  carefully  dried  out  of  the  reach  of  any  sul- 
phureted  vapors.  A  lighter  shade  of  yellow  is  obtained  by 
mixing  some  solution  of  alum,  or  sulphuric  acid,  with  the 
chromate,  before  pouring  it  into  the  solution  of  lead ;  and  an 
orange  tint  is  to  be  procured  by  the  addition  of  sub-acetate  of 
lead,  in  any  desired  proportion. 

6.  Nitrate  of  lead  is  prepared  by  dissolving  litharge,  or 
metallic  lead  in  nitric  acid,  and  evaporating  the  solution, 
which  leaves  a  crystaline  mass,  the  crystals  of  which  are 
white  and  generally  opaque,  and  soluble  in  1\  parts  of  cold 


140 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


water.  The  nitrate  of  lead,  when  prepared  in  this  way,  con- 
tains one  proportion  of  oxide,  and  one  of  nitric  acid ;  but  by 
boiling  the  salt  for  some  time  over  litharge,  the  acid  will 
combine  with  two,  three,  or  even  six  proportions  of  lead, 
forming  what  are  termed  basic  salts.*  The  fact  just  stated 
has  been  known  to  practical  dyers  for  some  years,  and  it  is 
made  available  for  the  purpose  of  dyeing  orange  or  dark 
shades  of  yellow. 

A  solution  of  nitrate  of  lead  may  be  partially  decomposed 
by  ammonia,  so  as  to  form  several  subnitrates.  On  adding 
a  very  small  quantity  of  the  alkali  a  subnitrate  is  formed, 
composed  of  1  equivalent  of  acid,  and  2  of  the  base ;  a  little 
more  produces  a  compound  of  1  equivalent  of  acid  and  3  of 
base,  and  an  excess  of  ammonia  precipitates  a  salt  composed 
of  1  of  acid  and  6  of  base. 

7.  The  bichromate }  or  red  chr ornate,  of  potash,  may  be 
prepared  from  the  yellow  chromate  by  adding  a  little  sulphu- 
ric acid  to  it,  which  combines  with  a  portion  of  the  potash, 
leaving  two  proportions  of  chromic  acid  in  union  with  one 
proportion  of  potash,  which  crystalizes  in  large  square  tubular 
crystals  of  a  rich  orange-red  color.  This  is  the  salt  used  in 
the  arts,  not  only  for  dyeing,  but  for  the  preparation  of  other 
chrome  compounds,  and  is  prepared  on  the  large  scale  in  the 
following  manner : — 

The  chrome  iron  ore,  after  being  finely  ground  and  sifted,  is  mixed  with  a 
quantity  of  dried  nitre  and  carbonate  of  potash.  This  mixture  is  thrown  into  a 
reverberating  furnace,  and  subjected  for  several  hours  to  a  powerful  heat,  being 
occasionally  stirred.  When  perfectly  calcined,  the  mass  is  raked  out  and  dissolved 
in  water.  It  is  then  boiled  for  several  hours,  after  which  the  insoluble  portion  is 
allowed  to  settle  and  the  solution  decanted,  which  is  evaporated,  and  leaves  crys- 
talled trie  yellow  chromate  of  potash.  The  chemical  changes  which  take  place 
to  the  furnace  are  these :  first,  the  decomposition  of  the  nitre  giving  off  oxygen, 
which  combines  with  the  oxide  of  chromium  and  forms  chromic  acid ;  this 
unites  with  the  potash  of  the  nitre  and  of  the  carbonate,  and  forms  the  yellow  salt 
which  is  soluble  in  water,  and  afterwards  separated  as  described.  It  contains 
also  soluble  impurities,  such  as  caustic  potash,  silicate  and  aluminate  of  potash, 
which  are  separated  by  the  succeeding  operations  of  boiling  and  crystalization. 

The  bichromate,  which  is  the  salt  used  in  dyeing,  is  pre- 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  and  Appendix,  article  Base. 


MINERAL   COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


141 


pared  from  the  yellow  obtained  as  above.  Into  a  concentra- 
ted solution  of  the  yellow  salt  is  poured  acetic,  or  sulphuric 
acid.  The  sulphuric  acid,  though  often  used,  is  not  well 
adapted  for  the  purpose,  as  the  sulphate  of  potash  formed  is 
most  difficult  to,  separate  from  the  chromate,  and  constitutes 
a  serious  adulteration.  Acetic  acid  is  preferable,  and  is  now 
generally  employed.  The  quantity  of  the  acid  used  is  so 
regulated,  that  it  combines  with  the  one  half  of  the  potash  in 
the  yellow  salt,  leaving  two  proportions  of  chromic  acid  in 
union  with  the  other  half;  this  process  may  be  expressed 
thus : — 


C  2  chromic  acid       ;  .>  Bichromate 
2  Yellow  salt  <  1  Potash  of  potash. 

(1  Potash  acetateof 

1  Acetic  acid   potash. 

The  solution  of  yellow  salt  being  concentrated  before  the 
addition  of  the  acid,  the  bichromate  formed  has  not  so  much 
water  as  to  hold  it  in  solution,  and  is  therefore  thrown  down 
as  an  orange  colored  powder.  This  is  carefully  collected, 
dissolved  again  in  water,  and  crystalized  by  slow  evapo- 
ration. 

The  bichromate  of  potash,  when  sulphuric  acid  has  been 
used,  is  sometimes  adulterated  to  about  40  per  cent.  This 
is  easily  detected  by  dissolving  a  small  quantity  of  the  salt 
in  distilled  water,  and  adding  to  it  pure  nitric  acid;  after 
which,  there  is  added  a  little  solution  of  nitrate  of  barytes. 
If  any  sulphate  be  present,  there  will  be  formed  on  the  addi- 
tion of  this  salt,  a  white  precipitate,  insoluble  in  acids  ;  if 
any  muriate  be  present,  the  addition  of  a  solution  of  nitrate 
of  silver  to  the  salt  similarly  prepared,  gives  a  white  curdy 
precipitate. 

Soda  is  sometimes  used  instead  of  potash  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  the  salt  of  chrome,  and  serves  the  purpose  of  the  dyer 
equally  well.  The  combination  of  chromic  acid  with  other 
bases  is  effected  by  decomposing  the  bichromate  with  the  salt 
of  the  particular  base  wanted.  For  example,  to  prepare  the 
chromate  of  lead  a  soluble  salt  of  lead,  such  as  the  acetate, 
is  added  to  a  solution  of  bichromate,  a  double  reaction  takes 


142 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


place,  and  there  is  formed  a  soluble  salt  of  potash,  and  an  in- 
soluble salt  of  lead. 

C  2  oxide  of  lead  Subchromate  of  lead. 

2  Chromate  of  lead  1  1  chromic  acid 

(  1  chromic  acid  Chromate  of  potash. 


2  Potash  jjpatarf 


potash    .   Potash. 


This  chromate  of  lead  is  a  Tich  lemon-yellow  powder, 
which  constitutes  the  chrome-yellow  dye.  If  this  powder  be 
digested  in  hot  caustic  potash,  it  is  partially  decomposed  ;  the 
potash  unites  with  one  proportion  of  the  chromic  acid,  and 
there  is  formed  a  basic  salt  of  lead  thus : — 


c  (  1  acetic  acid       .    .    Acetic  acid. 

2  Acetate  of  \laceticacid 

I  2  oxide  of  lead  , 


1  Bichromate  {  1  potash 
of  potash     I  2  chromic  acid 


:r  Acetate  of 
potash 
Chromate 
of  lead. 


CHROME-ORANGE,  or  SUBCHROMATE  OF  LEAD  (8). 
This  is  a  dark  orange-red  pigment,  consisting  of  one  equiva- 
lent of  chromic  acid  and  two  equivalents  of  oxide  of  lead. 
To  apply  it  to  cotton,  the  piece  is  first  dyed  with  chrome- 
yelloiv  (see  No.  5,  Chromate  of  Lead),  and  is  afterwards 
passed  through  hot  milk  of  lime*  by  which  a  portion  of  the 
chromic  acid  of  the  chrome-yellow  is  separated. 

8.  The  subchromate  of  lead,  prepared  in  the  following 
manner,  has  a  rich  vermilion  color,  greatly  superior  to  that 
obtained  upon  cotton  generally,  by  the  process  of  dyeing : — 

Having  fused  a  quantity  of  nitre  in  a  crucible,  add  gradually  dry  chromate  of 
lead,  so  long  as  effervescence  and  escape  of  red  fumes  take  place.  The  crucible 
being  then  taken  off  and  allowed  to  settle,  the  melted  portion  is  poured  off,  leaving 
the  heavy  powder  at  the  bottom,  which  may  be  washed  with  a  very  little  water. 

M.  Dulong's  method  of  preparing  subchromate  of  lead  in 
the  moist  way  is  well  known.  It  appears  that  the  product 
obtained  by  this  process  is  not  of  a  fine  cinnabar  red  color : 
it  has  merely  a  deep  orange  shade,  but  still  fine  enough  to  be 
employed  in  dyeing.  It  has  been  found  that,  by  fusing 
neutral  chromate  of  lead  with  nitrate  of  potash,  the  subchro- 


*  The  milk  of  lime  is  prepared  by  mixing  lime  with  water. 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


143 


mate  may  be  obtained  of  as  fine  a  red  as  the  best  cinnabar.* 
The  nitre  is  to  be  fused  at  a  low  red  heat,  and  pure  chro- 
mate  of  lead  thrown  into  it  in  small  portions  at  a  time.  On 
each  addition  of  the  chromate,  strong  effervescence  occurs, 
occasioned  by  disengagement  of  gas,  and  the  mass  becomes 
black,  because  the  chrome  red,  as  it  may  be  technically 
called,  appears  black  when  it  is  hot.  The  yellow  chromate 
is  to  be  added  until  all  the  nitre  is  decomposed.  Care  must 
be  taken  not  to  heat  the  crucible  too  strongly,  because  at  too 
high  a  temperature  the  color  loses  its  beauty  and  becomes 
brown.  The  crucible  is  then  to  remain  for  some  time,  in 
order  that  the  chrome  red,  which  is  heavy,  may  deposit,  and 
the  saline  mass,  which  is  composed  of  chromate  of  potash 
and  nitre,  is  to  be  poured  off  while  fluid.  This  mass  may 
be  used  again  for  the  preparation  of  fresh  chromate  of  lead. 
The  chrome  red  remaining  in  the  crucible  is  to  be  well 
washed  with  water,  and  dried. 

It  is  essential  not  to  leave  the  saline  solution  long  in  con- 
tact with  the  red  powder ;  because  by  this  it  loses  its  splen- 
dor, and  acquires  an  orange  tint.  The  powder,  however, 
subsides  so  fast  on  account  of  its  density  and  crystaline  state, 
that  this  inconvenience  is  easily  remedied  by  increasing  the 
number  of  washings.  The  chrome  red  thus  obtained  is  a 
powder  of  a  superb  cinnabar  red  color ;  when  it  is  examined 
by  the  light  of  the  sun,  it  appears  to  be  composed  of  small 
crystaline  scales.  Yellow  chromate  of  lead  dissolves  plen- 
tifully in  a  strong  boiling  solution  of  potash.  After  some 
days  this  solution  deposits  groups  of  red  crystals  composed 
of  small  plates,  which  consist  of  subchromate  of  lead,  and 
of  neutral  chromate.    (See  chapters  IY.  and  VI.,  Part  III.) 

M. 

MANGANESE  (9)  BROWN  (Hydratedt  Peroxide  of  Man- 

*  See  Appendix,  article  Cinnabar. 

t  Formed  into  a  hydrate.  A  hydrate  is  a  compound,  in  definite  proportions,  of 
a  metallic  oxide  with  water.  Slacked  lime  is  a  hydrate  of  lime. — (See  Appendix, 
article  Anhydrous.') 


144 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ganese). — Cloth  is  dyed  with  this  substance  by  being  passed, 
first,  through  a  solution  of  sulphate  or  chloride  of  man- 
ganese (10) ;  next,  through  a  caustic  alkaline  solution,  to 
precipitate  protoxide  of  manganese  (11) ;  and  lastly,  through 
a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime  (see  Bleaching),  to  convert 
the  protoxide  of  manganese  into  peroxide  (12) ;  or  the  per- 
oxidation may  be  effected  by  mere  exposure  to  air. 

9.  Manganese  is  a  grayish-white  metal,  of  a  fine-grained 
fracture,  very  hard,  very  brittle,  with  considerable  lustre, 
of  spec.  grav.  8-013,  and  requiring  for  fusion  the  extreme 
heat  of  160°  Wedgewood.  It  should  be  kept  in  closely  stop- 
pered bottles,  under  naptha,  like  potassium,  because  with 
contact  of  air  it  speedily  gets  oxidized,  and  falls  into  powder. 
It  decomposes  water  slowly  at  common  temperatures,  and 
rapidly  at  a  red  heat.  Pure  oxide  of  manganese  can  be 
reduced  to  the  metallic  state  only  in  small  quantities,  by 
mixing  it  with  lamp  black  and  oil  into  a  dough,  and  ex- 
posing the  mixture  to  the  intense  heat  of  a  smith's  forge, 
in  a  luted  crucible ;  which  must  be  shaken  occasionally  to 
favor  the  agglomeration  of  the  particles  into  a  button.  Thus 
procured,  it  contains,  however,  a  little  carbon. 

10.  Sulphate  and  hypo-sulphate  of  manganese. — By 
passing  sulphurous  acid  through  water  in  which  finely  pow- 
dered peroxide  of  manganese  is  suspended,  the  peroxide 
yields  part  of  its  oxygen  to  the  acid,  and  converts  one  portion 
into  sulphuric  and  another  into  hypo-sulphuric  acid.  Sul- 
phate and  hypo-sulphate  of  manganese  are  both  produced  ; 
and  by  pouring  lime  into  the  mixed  solution,  the  oxide  of 
manganese  is  thrown  down  with  an  insoluble  sulphate  of 
lime,  while  a  soluble  hypo-sulphate  of  lime  is  left  in  solution. 

The  solution  of  hypo-sulphate  of  manganese  affords  a 
deliquescent  salt  by  evaporation. — (See  Appendix,  article  De- 
liquescent.) 

11.  Protoxide  of  manganese. — Considerable  uncertainty 
still  exists  with  regard  to  the  various  compounds  of  manga- 
nese with  oxygen.  The  protoxide  may  be  formed  by  mixing 
the  deutoxide  with  charcoal,  and  exposing  it  to  a  strong  red 
heat;  or  by  passing  a  current  of  hydrogen  over  the  same 


MINERAL 


COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


145 


oxide  heated  to  redness  in  a  porcelain  tube.  When  pure  it  is 
of  a  green  color,  but  speedily  becomes  brown  from  the  ab- 
sorption of  oxygen.  It  may  also  be  produced  by  dissolving 
the  common  black  oxide  of  manganese  in  sulphuric  or  nitric 
acid,  adding  a  little  sugar,  and  precipitating,  by  solution  of 
potash  ;  a  white  powder  may  be  thus  collected,  which  is  a 
hydrate,  and  which,  being  heated  to  redness  out  of  the  con- 
tact of  air,  gives  off  its  water,  and  yields  the  oxide.  It  takes 
fire  when  gently  heated,  and  is  converted  into  the  deutoxide. 

The  deutoxide  of  manganese  is  readily  procured  by  expo- 
sing the  peroxide  to  a  low  red  heat.  It  is  of  a  brown  color. 
It  presents  the  anomaly  of  an  equivalent  and  a  half  of  oxy- 
gen united  to  the  metal.  When  exposed  to  the  air  it  slowly 
absorbs  oxygen,  and  returns  to  the  state  of  peroxide.  Both 
these  oxides  form  the  bases  of  saline  compounds. 

12.  Peroxide  of  manganese. — This  compound  is  found 
native  in  abundance,  and  is  used  in  the  arts  for  discoloring 
glass,  and  for  the  manufacture  of  chlorine  for  bleaching. 
It  is  commonly  of  an  earthy  appearance,  and  mixed  with 
other  ingredients  ;  but  it  is  not  unfrequently  met  with  in 
crystals  of  a  black  color  and  metallic  lustre.  It  undergoes 
no  change  on  exposure  to  the  air.  It  is  insoluble  in  water, 
and  does  not  unite  either  with  acids  or  alkalies.  It  has  the 
singular  property  of  inflaming  linseed  oil,  when  previously 
well  dried  and  kneaded  with  it.  On  exposure  to  red  heat  it 
gives  out  oxygen,  and  is  converted  into  deutoxide. 

The  analysis  of  the  ores  of  manganese,  when  pure,  is 
exceedingly  simple.  The  operator  need  only,  by  well-known 
methods,  determine  the  water  which  the  ore  contains,  and 
the  oxygen  which  it  loses  in  being  converted  into  the  red 
oxide.  Its  degree  of  oxidation,  on  which  the  commercial 
value  of  ores  of  manganese  so  essentially  depends,  may  then 
be  readily  inferred. 

But  when  impurities  prevail,  as  they  almost  always  do, 
more  or  less  in  commercial  manganese,  the  analytic  process  is 
complex  and  troublesome ;  and  the  presence  of  iron,  which 
is  rarely  absent,  renders  an  exact  result  by  the  ordinary 
modes  of  analysis  almost  impracticable ;  for,  when  peroxide 

19 


146 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  iron  is  strongly  heated  in  mixture  with  peroxide  or'deut- 
oxide  of  manganese,  oxygen  is  given  out  by  the  former  as 
well  as  by  the  latter ;  and,  accordingly,  the  oxygen  lost  by 
heat  ceases  to  indicate  the  nature  of  the  manganese.  A 
moderately  correct  allowance  for  the  quantity  of  oxygen 
emitted  by  the  iron  under  these  circumstances  would  be  diffi- 
cult, even  after  ascertaining  in  the  moist  way  the  quantity  of 
iron  contained  in  the  ore ;  since  the  constitution  of  the  result- 
ing oxide  of  iron,  as  well  as  its  uniformity,  is  probably  varia- 
ble, and  at  all  events,  is  undetermined.  The  chemist  would, 
therefore,  have  to  ascertain  separately  each  constituent  of  the 
ore,  and  consider  the  loss  as  oxygen  belonging  to  the  man- 
ganese,— a  method  not  to  be  trusted  in  a  complicated  analy- 
sis, and  which  would  be  wholly  inapplicable,  if  the  iron,  as 
contained  in  the  ore,  should  happen  not  to  be  uniformly 
oxidized. 

The  best  method  of  ascertaining  the  relative  quantities  of 
chlorine  which  an  equal  weight  of  each  ore  is  capable  of 
supplying,  consists  in  dissolving  a  given  weight  of  the  ore  in 
muriatic  acid,  condensing  the  chlorine  in  water,  and,  by 
some  uniform  measure,  estimating  the  quantity  of  chlorine 
relatively  to  an  equal  weight  of  pure  per-oxide  of  manganese, 
selected  as  a  standard  of  comparison.  The  substance  first 
used  with  this  intention  was  a  solution  of  indigo ;  but  a  weak 
solution  of  green  vitriol,  employed  by  Mr.  Dalton  for  ascer- 
taining the  strength  of  bleaching  powder,  was  found  to  be 
more  precise  in  its  indications. 

The  method  of  manipulation  is  as  follows  : — 

About  ten  grains  of  the  ore  in  fine  powder  is  introduced  into  a  flask  capable  of 
containing  about  an  ounce  of  water,  and  into  its  neck  is  fitted,  by  grinding,  a  bent 
tube  about  two  inches  long,  which  conducts  the  chlorine  from  the  flask  into  a 
tube  about  sixteen  inches  in  length,  and  five-eighths  of  an  inch  wide,  full  of  water, 
and  inverted  in  a  small  evaporating  capsule,  employed  as  a  pneumatic  trough. 
The  apparatus  being  adjusted,  the  flask  is  half  filled  with  concentrated  muriatic 
acid,  the  conducting  tube  instantly  inserted,  and  heat  applied  by  means  of  a  spirit- 
lamp.  The  air  of  the  flask,  together  with  the  chlorine,  is  then  collected,  the 
greater  part  of  the  latter,  if  the  gas  is  not  very  rapidly  disengaged,  being  absorbed 
in  its  passage ;  and,  consequently,  the  receiving  tube,  at  the  close  of  the  process, 
will  be  about  half  full  of  gas.  When  the  ore  is  completely  dissolved,  the  last 
traces  of  the  chlorine  are  expelled  from  the  flask  by  muriatic  acid  gas.    In  order 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


147 


that  the  chlorine  thus  collected  may  be  entirely  absorbed,  the  aperture  is  closed  by 
a  ground  stopper,  or,  still  more  conveniently,  with  the  finger,  and  the  gas  is  well 
agitated  until  the  chlorine  is  wholly  absorbed.  As  the  solution  in  the  inverted 
tube  may  become  too  saturated  to  dissolve  all  the  chlorine,  it  is  convenient  to  fill 
a  pipette  with  pure  water,  and,  with  the  aid  of  the  mouth,  force  a  current  to  as- 
cend into  the  tube,  and  thereby  cause  the  heavier  solution  to  flow  out  into  the 
capsule. 

The  absorption  being  complete,  the  solution  of  chlorine  is 
introduced  into  a  six  or  eight  ounce  stoppered  bottle,  and  a 
dilute  solution  of  green  vitriol,  made,  for  example,  with  a 
hundred  grains  of  the  crystalized  salt  and  a  pint  of  water,  is 
added  in  successive  small  quantities  until  the  odor  of  chlorine 
just  ceases  to  be  perceptible.  The  quantity  of  liquid  re- 
quired for  the  purpose  may  be  conveniently  measured  in  a 
tube  about  sixteen  inches  long,  and  three-quarters  of  an  inch 
in  diameter,  divided  into  two  hundred  parts  of  equal  capacity, 
and  supplied  with  a  lip,  so  that  a  liquid  may  be  poured  from 
it,  without  being  spilled.  In  conducting  this  part  of  the  pro- 
cess, the  operator  will  perceive  two  odors  : — at  first,  the 
characteristic  odor  of  chlorine,  accompanied  with  the  peculiar 
irritation  of  that  gas  ;  and  subsequently  an  agreeable,  slightly 
aromatic  odor,  unattended  with  irritation.  The  object  is,  to 
add  exactly  so  much  solution  of  iron  as  suffices  to  destroy  the 
former  of  these  odors,  without  attempting  to  remove  the 
latter,  a  point  which,  with  a  little  practice,  may  be  readily 
attained.  The  whole  of  the  iron  is  thus  brought  into  the 
state  of  peroxide. 

The  first  trial  is  generally  accompanied  with  some  loss  of 
chlorine,  and  should  only  be  used  as  a  guide  to  a  second  and 
more  precise  experiment.  Accordingly,  a  weighed  portion  of 
the  same  ore  is  dissolved,  and  the  chlorine  collected  as  before, 
except  that  the  solution  of  green  vitriol,  in  quantity  rather 
less  than  sufficient,  is  at  once  introduced  into  the  inverted 
tube  and  capsule.  A  more  ready  and  perfect  absorption  of 
the  chlorine  is  thus  effected,  and  the  subsequent  addition  of  a 
small  quantity  of  sulphate  of  iron  suffices  for  completing  the 
process. 

The  principal  sources  of  error  in  this  method  are  the  two 
following : —  loss  of  chlorine,  by  smelling  repeatedly,  and  ex- 


148  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

posure  to  the  air  when  the  gas  is  absorbed  by  pure  water, 
and  oxidation  by  the  air  when  the  absorption  is  made  directly 
by  means  of  the  solution  of  iron.  The  small  flask  and  in- 
verted tube  are  apt  to  retain  the  odor  of  chlorine,  and  should 
therefore  be  rinsed  out  with  the  absorbing  liquid.  It  should 
be  remembered  also,  that  a  given  quantity  of  chlorine  will 
emit  a  more  or  less  distinct  odor,  according  as  it  is  less  or 
more  diluted ;  but  by  operating  always  in  the  same  manner, 
and  employing  such  weights  of  different  ores,  that  equal 
quantities  of  the  solution  may  contain  nearly  equal  quantities 
of  chlorine,  it  is  easy  to  be  independent  of  these  errors  of 
manipulation,  by  causing  them  to  affect  each  experiment  to 
the  same  degree.  It  will  accordingly  be  found  with  a  little 
practice,  that  results  of  surprising  uniformity  may  be  thus 
obtained ;  and  even  the  constitution  of  pure  oxides  of  man- 
ganese may  be  ascertained  by  this  method,  almost  with  the 
same  accuracy  as  by  directly  determining  the  quantity  of 
oxygen. — (See  Bleaching,  Part  II.,  and  Appendix,  article 
Manganese.) 

o. 

ORPIMENT.  (Lat.  auripigmentum.)  Yellow  sulphuret 
of  arsenic;  it  forms  the  basis  of  the  yellow  paint,  called 
"  king's  yellow."  The  solution  of  orpiment  in  ammonia  has 
been  used  as  a  yellow  dye,  for  silk,  wool,  and  cotton,  by  first 
passing  the  goods  through  a  solution  of  orpiment  in  ammo- 
nia, and  afterward  suspending  them  in  a  warm  atmosphere 
to  volatilize  the  ammonia  and  precipitate  the  orpiment.  The 
dye  is,  however,  rather  fugitive.  Orpiment  is  sometimes  ap- 
plied in  the  form  of  a  solution  in  a  caustic  fixed  alkali,  in 
which  case  the  precipitation  is  afterward  effected  by  passing 
the  cloth  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid. 

The  finest  specimens  come  from  Persia,  in  brilliant  yellow 
masses,  of  a  lamellar  texture,  called  golden  orpiment.  Arti- 
ficial orpiment  is  manufactured  chiefly  in  Saxony,  by  sublim- 
ing in  cast  iron  cucurbits,  surmounted  by  conical  cast  iron 
capitals,  a  mixture  in  due  proportions  of  sulphur  and  arse- 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


149 


nious  acid  (white  arsenic).  Genuine  orpiment  is  often  adul 
terated,  and  is  frequently  nothing  else  than  white  arsenic 
combined  with  a  little  sulphur,  and  is  quite  soluble  in  water. 
It  is  therefore  a  deadly  poison,  and  has  been  administered 
with  criminal  intentions  and  fatal  effects.  A  proper  insoluble 
sulphuret  of  arsenic,  like  the  native  or  the  Saxon,  may  be 
prepared  by  transmitting  sulphureted  hydrogen  gas  through 
any  arsenical  solution.  It  consists  of  38-09  sulphur,  and 
60*92  of  metallic  arsenic,  and  is  not  remarkably  poisonous. 
The  finest  kinds  of  native  orpiment  are  reserved  for  artists : 
the  inferior  are  used  for  the  indigo  vat.  They  are  all  soluble 
in  alkaline  leys,  and  in  water  of  ammonia. 

P. 

PEROXIDE  OF  IRON  (13)  (iron  buff).— This  oxide  is  ap- 
plied to  cloth  to  produce  a  yellowish-brown  shade  of  different 
intensities,  by  passing  the  piece  through  a  solution  of  a  salt 
of  the  peroxide  of  iron,  and  a  solution  of  an  alkaline  carbon- 
ate, in  succession. 

13.  Peroxide  of  iron* — When  iron  is  dissolved  in  nitric 
acid,  then  boiled  for  some  time,  precipitated  by  ammonia,  and 
exposed  to  a  low  red  heat,  it  is  converted  into  peroxide.  It  is 
of  a  red  color,  and  not  attracted  by  the  magnet.  It  is  com- 
posed of 

1  equivalent  of  iron  .  .  28 
l£    ditto      oxygen      .       .  12 

40 

*  According  to  M.  Liebig,  when  carbonate  of  lime  is  boiled  with  a  solution  of 
peroxide  of  iron  and  protoxide  of  manganese,  the  former  is  precipitated,  and  the 
latter  remains  in  solution ;  the  separation  is  so  complete  that  no  trace  of  iron  re- 
mains in  solution,  nor  is  any  manganese  precipitated.  Carbonate  of  magnesia 
maybe  employed  for  the  same  purpose.  To  determine  the  precision  of  this  method, 
one  part  of  protosulphate  of  manganese  was  mixed  with  forty  parts  of  protosul- 
phate  of  iron,  and  mixtures  were  made  in  inverse  proportions ;  after  having  per- 
oxidized  the  iron  by  nitric  acid,  the  solutions  were  boiled  with  carbonate  of  mag- 
nesia. In  every  case  the  oxide  of  iron  was  completely  precipitated,  and  without  a 
trace  of  oxide  of  manganese.  The  muriates  and  nitrates  of  these  oxides  were  simi- 
larly treated,  and  the  results  were  similar,  both  with  the  carbonate  of  lime  and 
with  that  of  magnesia. 


150 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


The  affinity  of  iron  for  oxygen  is  very  great.  It  may  be 
burned  in  oxygen  gas ;  and,  when  heated  to  redness  in  the 
open  air,  it  absorbs  oxygen  rapidly,  and  is  converted  into 
black  scales,  called  the  black  oxide  of  iron.  This  is,  how- 
ever, not  a  definite  compound,  but  a  mixture  of  protoxide 
and  peroxide.  The  same  compound  is  also  produced  when 
the  steam  of  water  is  brought  into  contact  with  red  hot  iron. 
The  protoxide  of  iron  may  be  obtained  pure  by  passing  dry 
hydrogen  gas  over  the  peroxide  at  a  temperature  a  little  be- 
low redness.  Its  color  is  a  very  dark  blue.  It  is  attracted  by 
the  magnet,  but  not  so  strongly  as  the  metal  itself.  It  is  very 
combustible ;  and,  when  thoroughly  exposed  to  the  air  at 
common  temperatures,  it  spontaneously  ignites,  and  becomes 
converted  into  the  peroxide.  All  its  combinations  are  also 
characterized  by  this  high  attraction  for  oxygen.  It  is  com- 
posed of 

1  equivalent  of  iron  .  .  28 
1     ditto       oxygen     .       .  8 

36 

We  are  indebted  to  M.  M.  Wohler  and  Liebig,  for  the  fol- 
lowing observations  on  the  combination  of  the  protoxide  and 
peroxide  of  iron : — 

"  The  perfect  success  attending  the  method  for  obtaining 
protoxide  of  copper,  rendered  it  probable  that  protoxide  of 
iron,  which  had  not  hitherto  been  obtained  pure  in  a  separate 
state,  might  be  procured  in  the  same  manner.  With  this  ob- 
ject, sublimed  chloride  of  iron  was  prepared,  by  calcining  iron 
wire  in  muriatic  acid  gas.  This  chloride,  crystalized  in  white 
micaceous  scales,  was  fused  at  a  low  red  heat  with  dry  carbon- 
ate of  soda.  The  residual  mass  being  treated  with  water, 
there  remained  a  dense  black  powder. 

"This  substance  was  strongly  attracted  by  the  magnet, 
and  dissolved  in  muriatic  acid  without  evolving  any  gas : 
nevertheless  it  was  not  protoxide  of  iron,  but  a  mixture  of 
protoxide  and  peroxide,  as  was  ascertained  by  the  increase 
of  weight  which  it  acquired  by  calcination  in  the  air.  The 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


151 


solution  of  this  substance  in  muriatic  acid  is  yellow ;  when 
ammonia  is  added  to  it,  a  black  precipitate  is  formed,  which 
appears  brown  when  it  is  more  divided :  it  may  be  filtered 
and  washed  in  the  air  without  any  change  of  color,  that  is 
to  say,  without  becoming  a  hydrate  of  the  peroxide,  as  might 
be  expected.  After  drying,  the  precipitate  is  in  small  brittle 
pieces  of  a  black-brown  color,  and  of  a  deep  brown  when 
powdered :  it  is  a  hydrate  of  a  compound  of  the  protoxide 
and  deutoxide,  becoming  black  and  losing  its  water  by  heat. 

"  This  hydrate  possesses  another  unexpected  property, — 
that  of  being  attracted  by  the  magnet  as  strongly  as  the  in- 
termediate compound,  or  the  magnetic  iron  ore.  If  a  mag- 
net be  immersed  in  the  liquid,  while  the  precipitate  is  in  a 
state  of  suspension,  a  great  part  of  it  is  collected  round  the 
magnet. 

"  Magnetic  iron  ore  acts  in  a  precisely  similar  way  to  the 
artificial  substance  just  described.  Some  crystals  of  it  were 
dissolved  in  muriatic  acid,  without  the  contact  of  air,  and  the 
yellow  solution  was  precipitated  by  ammonia.  The  same 
black  precipitate  was  obtained,  which  did  not  oxidize  more  in 
the  air,  and  was  equally  magnetic.  It  is  well  known  that  the 
white  precipitate  formed  by  an  alkali  in  a  solution  of  a  proto- 
salt  of  iron,  becomes  black  when  it  is  boiled  in  the  liquid,  and 
it  was  apparently  admitted  that  this  precipitate  was  an  hy- 
drous protoxide  of  iron :  this  is  a  mistake,  for  it  is  also  a 
hydrate  of  the  protoxide  and  peroxide  formed  by  contact 
of  the  air  during  ebullition. 

"  The  white  protohydrate  of  iron  is  not  magnetic,  at  least 
while  it  remains  in  the  liquid.  This  fact  appears  surprising, 
if  it  be  admitted  that  in  the  magnetic  compounds  of  oxides 
of  iron  the  property  of  being  attracted  depends  upon  the 
quantity  of  protoxide  which  they  contain.  Reasoning  in  this 
way,  the  hydrate  of  the  protoxide  ought  to  be  more  magnetic 
than  the  hydrate  of  the  mixed  oxides." 

The  most  distinguished  analysts  have  been  occupied  with 
finding  a  method  of  separating  the  oxides  of  iron.  The  pro- 
cess proposed  by  Fuchs  is  extremely  accurate ;  mixtures  of 
proto-  and  per-salts  of  iron  are  boiled  with  carbonate  of  lime ; 


152 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  peroxide  of  iron  is  precipitated  in  the  state  of  a  subsalt, 
and  so  completely  that  the  solution  is  not  turned  red  by  the 
sulphocyanate  of  potash.  The  only  inconvenience  of  the 
process  is,  that  the  filtered  solution,  being  perfectly  neutral, 
becomes  slightly  turbid,  owing  to  the  conversion  of  a  small 
portion  of  protoxide  into  peroxide.  But  this  may  be  avoided 
by  using  carbonate  of  magnesia  instead  of  carbonate  of  lime  ; 
the  solution  does  not  become  turbid,  probably  because  magne- 
sia forms  a  more  stable  double  salt  with  the  protoxide  of 
iron. 

In  some  applications  this  method  of  separation  may  be  of 
importance.  Calico-printers  employ  pyrolignite  of  lime  to 
produce  very  different  tints,  and  these  depend  upon  the  pro- 
portion of  peroxide  which  it  contains,  and  this  is  easily  de- 
termined by  the  following  process  : — 

Take  two  equal  portions  of  pyrolignite  of  lime ;  one  of  them  is  peroxidized  by 
means  of  a  solution  of  chlorine,  or  by  ebullition  with  nitric  acid ;  then  precipitate 
by  ammonia,  which  gives  the  entire  quantity  of  iron  dissolved ;  the  other  portion 
is  to  be  boiled  with  carbonate  of  magnesia,  and  then  filtered;  the  protoxide  of  iron 
is  afterwards  converted  into  peroxide  by  the  means  above  mentioned,  and  precipi- 
tated by  ammonia,  after  having  added  a  certain  quantity  of  muriate  of  ammonia  to 
prevent  the  precipitation  of  the  magnesia.  The  weights  of  these  two  precipitates, 
after  subtracting  the  second  from  the  first,  will  give  with  sufficient  accuracy  the 
proportions  of  protoxide  and  peroxide. 

PRUSSIATE  OF  COPPER.— A  delicate  cinnamon  color 
is  sometimes  communicated  to  cotton  by  means  of  this  sub- 
stance, which  is  applied  by  first  passing  the  cloth  through  a 
solution  of  sulphate  of  copper,  then  through  a  dilute  alkali  to 
precipitate  oxide  of  copper,  and  lastly,  wincing  in  a  solution 
of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  containing  a  little  muriatic 
acid. 

The  solutions  of  all  the  salts  of  copper  have  a  blue  color 
when  diluted,  and  green  when  concentrated.  This  alone  is 
sufficient  to  distinguish  them  from  those  of  any  other  metal. 
A  small  proportion  of  potash  precipitates,  from  the  sulphate,  a 
green  subsalt ;  but  in  excess  it  throws  down  the  black  oxide. 
Ammonia  redissolves  the  precipitate,  and  a  splendid  deep  blue 
solution  is  produced.  Ferro-cyanate  of  potash  causes  a  red 
or  copper-colored  precipitate,  which  is  quite  characteristic  of 


MINERAL  COLORING  SUBSTANCES. 


153 


the  metal.  The  copper  is  deposited  in  the  metallic  state  both 
upon  zinc  and  iron.  The  taste  of  the  salts  of  copper  is 
styptic,  and  highly  nauseous,  and  they  are  all  poisonous. 

PRUSSIAN  BLUE.— To  apply  this  pigment,  the  cloth 
may  be  first  impregnated  with  a  solution  of  acetate  of  iron 
(iron  liquor) ;  and  afterwards  passed  through  a  solution  of 
yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  acidified  with  a  little  muriatic 
acid. — (See  chapter  V.  Part  III.) 

s. 

SCHEELE'S  GREEN  (arsenite  of  copper).— This  grass- 
green  colored  substance  may  be  applied  to  cloth  by  the  double 
decomposition  of  nitrate  of  copper  *  and  arsenite  of  potash  ;t 
the  cloth  being  passed  through  solutions  of  these  salts  con- 
secutively. A  better  method  is,  to  precipitate  oxide  of  copper 
on  the  cloth  by  the  action  of  an  alkali,  and  to  wince  the  piece 
afterwards  in  a  solution  of  arsenite  of  potash. — (See  Appendix, 
article  ScheeWs  Green.) 

SULPHURET  OF  CADMIUM.— This  compound  may  be 
fixed  on  silk,  to  which  it  gives  a  beautiful  golden  color,  by 
first  impregnating  that  substance  with  a  certain  quantity  of 
chloride  of  cadmium,  and  putting  it  afterwards  in  contact 
with  a  weak  solution  of  hydro-sulphate  of  potash  or  of  soda. — 
(See  chapter  III.  Part  V.,  article  Golden  Yellow  by  Sulphu- 
ret  of  Cadmium.) 


♦  See  Appendix,  article  Nitrate  of  Copper. 

t  See  Appendix,  articles  Arsenic,  and  Arseniate  of  Potash. 

20 


CHAPTER  V, 


ACIDS  EMPLOYED  IN  DYEING  AND  CALICO-PRINTING. 

Acetic  Acid—  Chloric  Acid — Chromic  Acid — Citric  Acid — Malic  Acid — Muriatic, 
or  Hydrochloric  Acid — Nitric  Acid — Nitro-Muriatic  Acid  (Aqua  Regia) — Oxalic 
Acid — Pyroligneous  Acid  (or  Wood  Vinegar) — Sulphuric  Acid — Tannic  Acid — 
Tartaric  Acid. 

A. 

ACETIC  ACID  is  the  name  of  the  sour  principle  which 
exists  in  vinegar,  in  which  shape  it  appears  to  have  been 
known  even  to  remote  antiquity.  It  is  mentioned  by  Moses, 
nearly  1500  years  before  the  Christian  era,  (Numb.  vi.  3,) 
and  was  extensively  used  by  the  Israelites,  as  well  as  by  the 
Greeks  and  Romans.  It  occurs,  ready  formed,  in  several 
products  of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  and  is  generated  during 
the  spontaneous  fermentation  of  many  vegetable  and  animal 
juices.  The  sambucus  nigra,  or  black  elder,  the  phanix 
dactilifera,  and  the  rhiis  typhinus  are  plants  which  afford  a 
notable  quantity  of  vinegar.  It  is  found,  likewise,  in  the 
sweat,  urine,  milk,  and  stomach  of  animals.  All  infusions  of 
animal  or  vegetable  matters  in  water,  when  exposed  for  some 
time  to  the  air,  at  a  moderate  temperature,  ferment  into  vin- 
egar ;  and  most  vegetables,  when  subjected  to  decomposition 
by  fire,  give  off  condensable  vapors  of  acetic  acid. 

It  has  been  long  known  that,  when  dry  acetate  of  soda 
and  sulphuric  acid  are  mixed  in  the  requisite  proportions, 
and  distilled  m  a  retort,  an  acetic  acid  comes  over  so  strong 
that  it  crystalizes  when  cooled  down  to  a  low  temperature, 
and  remains  in  crystals  as  long  as  the  thermometer  is  lower 
than  50°.  If  we  have  a  considerable  quantity  of  the  acid 
in  this  concentrated  state,  we  have  it  in  our  power,  by  decant- 
ing the  liquid  portion  off  the  crystals,  to  obtain  them  in  a 


ACIDS. 


155 


state  of  great  purity,  and  quite  dry.  It  is  in  this  way  that 
crystalized  acetic  acid  is  prepared  by  Mr.  Ramsay  of  Glas- 
gow. By  drying  these  crystals  on  blotting  paper,  at  a  low 
temperature,  they  may  be  freed  completely  from  all  adhering 
liquid,  and  made  as  dry  as  the  crystals  of  tartaric  acid. 

Dr.  Thomson  put  a  quantity  of  these  dry  crystals  into  a 
phial,  and  melted  them  by  leaving  them  for  24  hours  in  a 
warm  room.  The  liquid  thus  obtained  did  not  crystalize, 
though  kept  for  a  long  time  in  a  temperature  as  low  as  40° ; 
but  if  we  raise  it  to  the  temperature  of  45°,  and  throw  into 
it  a  single  crystal  of  acetic  acid,  a  number  of  crystaline 
spiculse  dart  out  with  rapidity  all  over  the  liquid,  and  the 
temperature  rises  from  45°  to  51°.  By  degrees,  after  this 
commencement  of  crystalization,  the  whole  liquid  assumes 
the  solid  form,  although  the  temperature  be  not  lower 
than  45°. 

These  crystals,  while  in  a  liquid  state,  and  at  the  tem- 
perature of  60°,  have  a  specific  gravity  of  1*06296. 

The  same  gentleman  dissolved  22*125  grains  of  these  crys- 
tals in  water,  and  added  to  the  solution  26*25  grains  of 
anhydrous  carbonate  of  potash,  obtained  by  exposing  bicar- 
bonate of  potash  to  a  red  heat.  This  addition  just  neutral- 
ized the  acid,  for  the  mixture  produced  no  change  upon 
the  color  of  litmus  or  cudbear  paper.  If  we  divide  each  of 
the  substances  employed  by  3,  the  consequences  meant  to 
be  drawn  from  the  experiment  will  be  plainer. 
22125 

 =  7*375 ;  and 

3 

26-25" 

 =  8*75 

3 

We  may  say,  then,  that  7*375  grains  of  crystals  of  acetic 
acid  were  just  neutralized  by  8.75  grains  of  anhydrous  car- 
bonate of  potash  ;  but  8*75  grains  of  this  carbonate  contain 
just  6  grains  of  potash,  which  is  equivalent  to  an  atom. 
Consequently,  7*375  grains  of  the  crystals  of  acetic  acid  must 
contain  just  6*25  grains  of  real  acetic  acid ;  for  that  is  the 
quantity  requisite  to  saturate  6  grains  of  potash.    The  re- 


156  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

mainder  of  the  weight  of  the  acid  is  obviously  water,  and 
it  amounts  to  1*125,  which  is  equivalent  to  an  atom  of  water. 
Thus  it  appears  that  the  crystals  of  acetic  acid  are  com- 
posed of 

1  atom  real  acid       .       .  6*25 
1  atom  water  .       .  1-125 


7-375 

By  dissolving  given  weights  of  these  crystals  in  water, 
and  taking  the  specific  gravity  of  the  solutions  at  60°,  Dr. 
Thomson  was  enabled  to  form  the  following  table,  exhibit- 
ing the  specific  gravity  of  various  atomic  compounds  of  this 
acid  and  water : — 


ACID  WATER  SP.  GR.  at  60° 


atom  -j- 

1  atom 

1-06296 

+ 

2  - 

107060 

+ 

3  - 

1-07084 

-  + 

4  - 

107132 

-  + 

5  - 

1-06820 

-.  + 

6  - 

1-06708 

-  + 

7  - 

1-06349 

+ 

8  - 

1-05974 

+ 

9  - 

105794 

-      +  10  - 

105439 

W  e  see  from  this  table  that  the  specific  gravity  of  the  liquid 
is  a  maximum,  when  it  consists  of  1  atom  acid  united  to  4 
atoms  water  ;  or,  when  it  is  composed  of 

Acid  .  6-25  or  100  or  58-1395 
Water     .      45      -      72    -  41-8605 


100 

We  see,  too,  that  the  specific  gravity  of  acid,  containing 
only  1  atom  water,  is  nearly  the  same  with  that  containing  7 
atoms  water ;  or  the  two  following  compounds 

1  $Acid         6-25     or   100   or  84-7457 
'  /  Water      1  125    -      18    -  15-2543 


ACIDS. 


157 


2  \Acid         6-25     or    100    or  44-2477 
'  I  Water      7  875    -    126    -  55-7523 

have  nearly  the  same  specific  gravity.  It  is  obvious  from 
this,  that  the  specific  gravity  of  an  acetic  acid  does  not  assist 
us  in  determining  its  strength,  or  the  true  quantity  of  acid 
which  it  contains. 

The  following  Table,  from  the  Pharm.  Central  Blatt  fur 
1839,  drawn  up  by  M.  Mohr,  exhibits  the  specific  gravity  of 
pure  acetic  acid  of  almost  every  strength  : — 


rCT  CGnt. 

(C.  4,  H.  3, 

yj .  o  rxiu.  j 

Sp.  Gr. 

JTCl  L/Cllt. 

(C.  4,  H.  3, 

Sp.  Gr. 

{Jay  pnnf 
JT  t/1  Lt  III, 

(C.  4,  H.  3, 
O  3-1- An  V 

Sr>  dr 

Op.  VJT. 

100 

1  0635 

66 

1069 

32 

i  -04.24. 

99 

10635 

65 

1068 

31 

1041 

98 

1067 

64 

1068 

30 

1040 

97 

1-0680 

63 

1-068 

29 

1039 

96 

1069 

62 

1067 

28 

1038 

95 

1-070 

61 

1067 

27 

1036 

94 

10706 

60 

1067 

26 

1035 

93 

1-0708 

59 

1066 

25 

1034 

92 

10716 

58 

1066 

24 

1033 

91 

1-0721 

57 

1065 

23 

1032 

90 

10730 

56 

1064 

22 

1031 

89 

1-0730 

55 

1064 

21 

1-029 

88 

10730 

54 

1063 

20 

1027 

87 

10730 

53 

1063 

19 

1-026 

86 

1.0730 

52 

1062 

18 

1025 

85 

10730 

51 

1061 

17 

1024 

84 

10730 

50 

1060 

16 

1023 

83 

1-0730 

49 

1-059 

15 

1-022 

82 

1-0730 

48 

1-058 

14 

1020 

81 

10732 

47 

1056 

13 

1-018 

80 

1-0735 

46 

1055 

12 

1017 

79 

1  0732 

45 

1055 

11 

1016 

78 

10732 

44 

1054 

10 

1015 

77 

1073 

43 

1053 

9 

1013 

76 

1072 

42 

1052 

8 

1-012 

75 

1072 

41 

10515 

7 

1010 

74 

1-072 

40 

1-0513 

6 

1008 

73 

1071 

39 

1050 

5 

1  0067 

72 

1071 

38 

1049 

4 

10065 

71 

1071 

37 

1-048 

3 

1004 

70 

1070 

36 

1047 

2 

1002 

69 

1-070 

35 

1046 

1 

1001 

68 

1070 

34 

1045 

0 

10000 

67 

1069 

33 

1044 

158 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


C. 

CHLORIC  ACID. — This  acid  consists  of  1  equivalent 
prime  of  chlorine  =3*476,= 5  of  oxygen, +40*065  ;  of  which 
the  sum  75*535  is  the  prime  equivalent  of  the  acid. 

CHROMIC  ACID  is  found  in  nature  in  combination  with 
lead,  and  may  be  extracted  by  boiling  the  powdered  mineral 
with  twice  its  weight  of  carbonate  of  potash,  and  afterwards 
saturating  the  alkali  by  a  mineral  acid.  It  is  of  a  red  color, 
and  may  be  obtained,  from  its  solution,  in  ruby-colored  crys- 
tals.* It  has  a  sour  metallic  taste.  When  exposed  to  heat  it 
gives  off  oxygen,  and  is  converted  into  the  protoxide.  It  is 
probably  constituted  of 

1  equivalent  of  chromium  .       .  28 

3  do        oxygen        ...  24 

52 

Various  methods  have  been  proposed  for  preparing  this 
acid ;  the  following  furnished  us  by  Mr.  Robert  Harrington, 
is  probably  the  most  simple  : — 

Take  100  measures  of  a  cold  saturated  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash  (pre- 
pared by  boiling,  and  then  allowing  the  solution  to  cool  and  deposit  the  excess  of 
the  salt,)  and  add  to  this  from  120  to  150  measures  of  concentrated  sulphuric  acid; 
the  latter  should  be  free  from  sulphate  of  lead ;  as  otherwise  it  would  fall  as  chro- 
mate  and  sulphate  of  lead  with  the  chromic  acid  on  dilution  with  the  bichromate. 
The  mixture  is  then  allowed  to  cool,  and  the  chromic  acid  gradually  crystalizes  in 
beautiful  dark  crimson  needles.  Decant  the  fluid  part,  and  place  the  crystals  with 
the  adhering  sulphuric  acid  on  a  thick  flat  tile  of  biscuit  porcelain ;  another  tile  is 
then  to  be  placed  upon  the  crystals  and  the  whole  submitted  to  a  pressure  for  a 
considerable  time.  On  removing  the  chromic  acid  it  will  be  found  in  a  perfectly 
dry  state,  and  yielding  a  mere  trace  of  sulphuric  acid  on  examination. 

Chromic  acid  may  also  be  prepared  from  the  chromate  of 
lead,  which  results  from  the  mixture  of  a  salt  of  lead  and  bi- 
chromate of  potash  at  the  bottom  of  the  chrome  tubs  used  in 
dyeing  yellows.!    Two  parts  of  strong  sulphuric  acid  being 


It  gives  its  color  to  the  ruby. 


t  See  chapters  IV.  and  VI.  Part  III. 


ACIDS. 


159 


added  to  one  part  of  dry  chromate  of  lead  slightly  heated, 
and  allowed  to  stand  for  about  twelve  hours ;  water  is  then 
added,  when  the  lead  is  precipitated  as  a  sulphate,  and  the 
chromic  acid  mixed  with  a  little  sulphuric  acid  remains  in 
solution.  The  liquid  is  decanted  and  evaporated  at  a  boiling 
heat;  on  cooling,  the  greater  portion  of  the  chromic  acid 
separates  in  beautiful  carmine-red  crystals.  If  the  process  be 
carefully  conducted,  a  great  portion  of  what  is  now  little 
better  than  thrown  away,  might  be  made  useful  by  a  trifling 
addition  of  expense. 

We  extract  the  following  method  of  preparing  chromic 
acid,  by  Mr.  Maus,  from  a  recent  number  of  the  Annalen  der 
Phyk:— 

A  concentrated  hot  solution  of  the  acid  chromate  of  potash 
of  commerce  is  decomposed,  by  means  of  fluo-silicic  acid. 
The  liquid  is  filtered  and  evaporated  to  dryness.  The  acid 
thus  dried  is  dissolved  in  as  small  a  quantity  of  water  as  pos- 
sible, and  when  the  solution  has  become  clear,  it  is  decanted 
from  the  gravelly  deposit,  formed  by  a  slight  quantity  of  fluo- 
silicate  of  potash,  which  had  passed  through  the  filter  in  the 
state  of  solution.  It  is  necessary  to  avoid  filtering  the  chro- 
mic acid  thus  dissolved,  for  it  attacks  the  paper  in  the  same 
manner  as  sulphuric  acid  does,  and  is  converted  into  oxidule 
of  chromium. 

To  prepare  the  fluo-silicic  acid,  the  author  uses  a  very 
large  retort,  with  a  long  beak,  into  which  he  introduces  the 
mixture  of  fluor-spar  and  glass.  He  pours  in  at  once  all  the 
sulphuric  acid  necessary,  namely,  at  most  three  parts  acid  for 
one  part  of  spar ;  he  shakes  the  vessel  well,  and  directs  the 
beak  into  a  large  long-necked  balloon,  in  which  he  has  pre- 
viously poured  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water,  which  he  has 
shaken  about  in  order  to  moisten  the  inside.  The  gas  pass- 
ing into  it,  falls  in  the  form  of  dew  upon  the  liquid  surface, 
and  that  which  is  not  absorbed  at  once  by  the  water  in  the 
bottom,  is  attracted  by  the  moisture  of  the  wetted  inside  sur- 
face. Not  the  smallest  trace  of  gas  escapes,  before  the  inner 
surface,  as  well  as  the  surface  of  the  water,  are  covered  with 
a  thick  crust  of  silica.    Then  it  is  sufficient  to  shake  the  bal- 


160  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

loon  in  order  to  moisten  the  inside  again,  and  renew  the  sur- 
face of  the  liquid.  In  this  way  the  water  may  be  completely 
saturated  with  the  acid,  and  it  is  easily  freed  from  the  crusts 
of  silica,  which  fall  to  the  bottom. 

Chromic  acid  combines  with  the  different  bases,  and  forms 
a  series  of  important  salts.  With  potash  it  combines  in  two 
proportions,  forming  what  is  termed  the  yellow  and  the  red 
chromate  of  potash.  The  yellow  chromate  of  potash  may  be 
prepared  by  adding  to  2  lbs.  of  red  chromate  one  pound  of 
caustic  potash ;  it  crystalizes  in  small  crystals  of  a  rich  deep 
lemon  color,  composed  of  one  proportion  of  acid  with  one  of 
potash.    This  salt  is  not  much  used  in  the  arts. 

CITRIC  ACID,  in  somewhat  crude  crystals,  is  employed 
with  much  advantage  in  calico-printing.  Though  the  taste 
of  this  acid  in  crystals  is  as  intensely  acid  as  that  of  tartaric 
or  even  oxalic  acid,  yet  it  acts  with  less  energy  upon  other 
bodies,  and  does  not  so  easily  decompose  other  salts  as  these 
two  acids  do.  Thus,  when  we  mix  oxalate  of  ammonia  with 
a  solution  of  muriate  of  lime,  oxalate  or  tartrate  of  lime  im- 
mediately precipitates. 

Scheele  first  procured  this  acid  in  its  pure  state  from  lemon 
juice,  by  the  following  process : — The  juice  put  into  a  large 
tub,  is  to  be  saturated  with  dry  chalk  in  fine  powder,  noting 
carefully  the  quantity  employed.  The  citrate  of  lime  which 
precipitates,  being  freed  from  the  supernatant  foul  liquor,  is  to 
be  well  washed  with  repeated  affusion  and  decantation  of 
water.  For  every  ten  pounds  of  chalk  employed,  nine  and  a 
half  pounds  of  sulphuric  acid,  diluted  with  six  times  its 
weight  of  water,  are  to  be  poured  while  warm  upon  the  citrate 
of  lime,  and  well  mixed  with  it.  At  the  end  of  twelve  hours, 
or  even  sooner,  the  citrate  will  be  all  decomposed,  dilute  citrie 
acid  will  float  above,  and  sulphate  of  lime  will  be  found  at  the 
bottom.  The  acid  being  drawn  off,  the  calcareous  sulphate 
must  be  thrown  on  a  canvass  filter,  drained,  and  then  washed 
with  water  to  abstract  the  whole  acid. 

The  citric  acid  thus  obtained  may  be  evaporated  in  leaden 
pans,  over  a  naked  fire,  till  it  acquires  the  specific  gravity 
1*13;  after  which  it  must  be  transferred  into  another  vessel. 


ACIDS.  161 

evaporated  by  a  steam  or  water  bath  till  it  assumes  a  syrupy 
aspect,  when  a  pellicle  appears  first  in  patches  and  then  over 
the  whole  surface.  This  point  must  be  watched  with  great 
circumspection,  for  if  it  be  passed,  the  whole  acid  runs  a  risk 
of  being  spoiled  by  carbonization.  The  steam  or  hot  water 
must  be  instantly  withdrawn,  and  the  concentrated  acid  put 
into  a  crystalizing  vessel  in  a  dry,  but  not  very  cold  apart- 
ment. At  the  end  of  four  days,  the  crystalization  will  be 
complete.  The  crystals  must  be  drained,  re-dissolved  in  a 
small  portion  of  water,  the  solution  set  aside  to  settle  its  im- 
purities, then  decanted,  re-evaporated,  and  re-crystalized.  A 
third  or  fourth  crystalization  may  be  necessary  to  obtain  a 
colorless  acid. 

If  any  citrate  of  lime  be  left  undecomposed  by  the  sul- 
phuric acid,  it  will  dissolve  in  the  citric  acid,  and  obstruct  its 
crystalization,  and  hence  it  will  be  safer  to  use  the  slightest 
excess  of  sulphuric  acid,  than  to  leave  any  citrate  undecom- 
posed. There  should  not,  however,  be  any  great  excess  of  sul- 
phuric acid.  If  there  be,  it  is  easily  detected  by  nitrate  of 
barytes,  but  not  by  the  acetate  of  lead  as  prescribed  by  some 
chemical  authors ;  because  the  citrate  of  lead  is  not  very 
soluble  in  the  nitric  acid,  and  might  thus  be  confounded  with 
the  sulphate,  whereas  citrate  of  barytes  is  perfectly  soluble  in 
that  test  acid.  Sometimes  a  little  nitric  acid  is  added  with 
advantage  to  the  solution  of  the  colored  crystals,  with  the 
effect  of  whitening  them. 

The  crystals  of  citric  acid  are  oblique  prisms  with  four 
faces,  terminated  by  dihedral  summits,  inclined  at  acute 
angles.  Their  specific  gravity  is  1-617.  They  are  unalter- 
able in  the  air.  When  heated,  they  melt  in  their  water  of 
crystalization ;  and  at  a  higher  heat,  they  are  decomposed.* 


*  Berzelius  decomposed  citric  acid  by  mixing  1  part  of  citrate  of  lead  with  chlo- 
rate of  potash,  burning  the  mixture  in  a  glass  tube,  and  collecting  the  products. 
He  deduced  from  this  analysis  that  the  constituents  of  citric  acid  per  cent,  are 

Hydrogen       .      .  3-800 

Carbon  .      .  41-369 

Oxygen         .      .  54-831 


100 

21 


162 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


They  contain  eighteen  per  cent,  of  water,  of  which  one-half 
may  be  separated  in  a  dry  atmosphere,  at  about  100°  F., 
when  the  crystals  fall  into  a  white  powder.* 

If  citric  acid  is  adulterated  with  tartaric  acid,  the  fraud 
may  be  detected  by  adding  potash  to  the  solution  of  the  acid, 
which  will  occasion  a  precipitate  of  cream  of  tartar. 

M. 

MALIC  ACID  exists  in  the  juices  of  many  fruits  and 
plants,  alone,  or  associated  with  the  citric,  tartaric,  and  oxalic 
acids  ;  and  occasionally  combined  with  potash  or  lime.  Un- 
ripe apples,  sloes,  barberries,  the  berries  of  the  mountain  ash, 
elder  berries,  currants,  gooseberries,  strawberries,  raspberries, 
bilberries,  brambleberries,  whortleberries,  cherries,  ananas, 
afford  malic  acid;  the  house-leek  and  purslane  contain  the 
malate  of  lime. 

The  acid  may  be  obtained  most  conveniently  from  the 
juice  of  the  berries  of  the  mountain  ash,  or  barberries.  This 
must  be  clarified,  by  mixing  with  white  of  egg,  and  heating 
the  mixture  to  ebullition ;  then  filtering,  digesting  the  clear 
liquor  with  carbonate  of  lead,  till  it  becomes  neutral;  and 
evaporating  the  saline  solution,  till  crystals  of  malate  of  lead 
be  obtained.  These  are  to  be  washed  with  cold  water,  and 
purified  by  re-crystalization.  On  dissolving  the  white  salt  in 
water,  and  passing  a  stream  of  sulphureted  hydrogen  through 
the  solution,  the  lead  will  be  all  separated  in  the  form  of  a  sul- 
phuret,  and  the  liquor,  after  filtration  and  evaporation,  will 
yield  yellow  granular  crystals,  or  cauliflower  concretions,  of 
malic  acid,  which  may  be  blanched  by  re-dissolution  and  di- 
gestion with  bone-black,  and  re-crystalization. 

Malic  acid  has  no  smell,  but  a  very  sour  taste,  deliquesces 
by  absorption  of  moisture  from  the  air,  is  soluble  in  alcohol, 
fuses  at  150°  Fahr.,  is  decomposed  at  a  heat  of  348°,  and 

*  Citric  ar  _>  in  crystals  is  composed,  according  to  Dr.  Ure's  analysis,  of  carbon 
35-8  oxygen  59  7,  and  hydrogen  4  5 ;  results  which  differ  very  little  from  those  of 
Dr.  Prout,  subsequently  obtained.  He  also  found  its  atomic  weight  to  be  8  375, 
compared  to  oxygen  1000. 


ACIDS. 


163 


affords  by  distillation  a  peculiar  acid,  the  pyromalic.  It  con- 
sists in  100  parts,  of  41*47  carbon ;  3*51  hydrogen ;  and  55*02 
oxygen ;  having  nearly  the  same  composition  as  citric  acid.* 

Mr.  Everett  has  lately  proposed  the  juice  of  the  leaf-stalks 
of  garden  rhubarb  as  a  source  of  malic  acid.  One  imperial 
gallon  of  this  juice  contains  11,139{  grs.  of  dry  malic  acid. 
The  stalks  should  be  peeled  before  pressing  out  the  juice,  as 
the  cuticle  contains  much  color.  20,000  grs.  of  the  peeled 
stalks  yield  12,500  grs.  of  juice.  Mr.  Everett's  process  is  as 
follows : — neutralize  with  hydrate  of  lime,  boil,  filter,  precip 
itate  with  nitrate  of  lead,  allow  it  to  stand  for  a  few  hours, 
boil,  cool,  filter,  decompose  the  precipitate  with  sulphuric 
acid,  avoiding  excess,  throw  down  the  excess  of  lead  from  the 
supernatant  portion  with  sulphureted  hydrogen,  evaporate, 
and  crystalize. 

M.  Guerin  observes,  that  Scheele  obtained  a  peculiar  acid, 
which  he  called  malic  acid,  by  the  action  of  nitric  acid  upon 
mucilage.  Tourcroy  and  Vanquelin  repeated  these  experi- 
ments, and  described  a  new  uncrystalizable  acid,  which  they 
considered  as  identical  with  the  malic  acid  of  fruits,  this  acid 
not  having  then  been  obtained  in  a  crystaline  state. 

In  order  to  prepare  this  artificial  malic  acid,  M.  Guerin  em- 
ployed the  following  process :  one  part  of  gum  arabic  was 
treated  with  two  parts  of  nitric  acid,  diluted  with  half  their 
weight  of  water ;  the  mixture  was  heated  moderately,  until 
all  the  gum  was  dissolved,  and  the  solution  was  then  slowly 
boiled  for  two  hours.  After  dilution  with  water,  it  was  neu- 
tralized with  ammonia ;  muriate  of  lime  was  then  added,  to 
precipitate  the  oxalic  acid  formed,  and  the  whole  was  thrown 
on  a  filter ;  the  filtered  liquor  was  yellowish  red,  and  the  so- 
lution of  nitrate  of  lead  was  added  to  it ;  a  yellowish  precipi- 
tate was  obtained,  which,  after  being  well  washed,  was  de- 
composed by  a  current  of  sulphureted  hydrogen  gas,  and  the 
acid  liquor  was  evaporated  with  a  gentle  heat ;  this  was 
again  saturated  with  ammonia,  and  decomposed  by  nitrate 

*  A  crude  malic  acid  might  be  economically  extracted  from  the  fruit  of  the 
mountain  ash,  applicable  to  many  purposes ;  but  it  has  not  been  hitherto  man- 
ufactured upon  the  great  scale. 


164 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  lead ;  and  the  precipitate  decomposed  by  sulphureted  hy- 
drogen, gave  an  acid  liquor,  which,  though  evaporated  to  the 
consistence  of  a  syrup,  gave  no  crystals.* 

The  properties  of  this  acid  are,  that  it  is  slightly  yellow, 
reddens  litmus,  its  taste  resembles  that  of  malic  acid,  is  in- 
odorous, and  more  dense  than  water.  It  is  very  soluble,  both 
in  water  and  in  alcohol ;  it  causes  precipitation  in  lime,  ba- 
rytes,  strontia  water,  which  is  re-dissolved  by  excess  of  acid. 
The  salts  of  lead  give  a  bulky  precipitate  with  it,  which  is 
insoluble  in  cold  water,  and  in  excess  of  the  acid ;  boiling 
water  dissolves  a  small  portion,  which  crystalizes  as  the  solu- 
tion cools.  When  this  acid  is  neutralized  by  ammonia,  and 
heated,  an  acid  is  formed,  which  crystalizes  in  colorless 
prisms  with  a  rectangular  base.  Its  taste  is  slightly  acid ; 
cold  water  dissolves  it  sparingly,  but  boiling  water  readily. 
It  is  insoluble  in  alcohol.  This  acid  may  be  obtained  by 
treating  one  part  of  sugar  or  of  starch  with  half  a  part  of 
nitric  acid,  in  the  same  manner  as  already  described  with 
gum. 

MURIATIC  or  HYDROCHLORIC  ACID;  anciently 
marine  acid,  and  spirit  of  salt.  The  knowledge  of  the 
composition  of  muriatic  acid  and  the  theory  of  chlorides,  for 
which  we  are  indebted  to  Sir  H.  Davy,  constitutes  one  of 
the  greatest  improvements  of  modern  chemistry.  It  was 
only  advanced  by  its  great  discoverer  in  general  terms.  Dr. 
John  Davy  afterwards  published  a  most  admirable  paper 
on  the  chlorides,  containing  a  very  great  number  of  ex- 
periments, the  exactness  of  which  Dr.  Thomson  proved, 
from  having  repeated  almost  the  whole  of  them.f 

This  acid  is  extracted  from  sea-salt,  by  the  action  of  sul- 
phuric acid  and  a  moderate  heat.  The  acid  gas  which 
exhales,  is  rapidly  condensed  by  water.  100  cubic  inches 
of  water  are  capable  of  absorbing  no  less  than  48,000  cubic 
inches  of  the  acid  gas,  whereby  the  liquid  acquires  a  specific 
gravity  of  1-2109  ;  and  a  volume  of  142  cubic  inches.  This 
vast  condensation  is  accompanied  with  a  great  production 


*  Ann.  de  Chim.  et  de  Phys.,  torn.  xlix.  p.  274.  t  Phil.  Trans.  1823. 


ACIDS. 


165 


of  heat,  whence  it  becomes  necessary  to  apply  artificial  re- 
frigeration, especially  if  so  strong  an  acid  as  the  above  is 
to  be  prepared.  In  general,  the  muriatic  acid  of  commerce 
has  a  specific  gravity  varying  from  1*15  to  1*20 ;  and  con- 
tains, for  the  most  part,  considerably  less  than  40  parts  by 
weight  of  acid  gas  in  the  hundred.  The  above  stronger 
acid  contains  42-68  per  cent,  by  weight ;  for  since  a  cubic 
inch  of  water,  which  weighs  252*5  grains,  has  absorbed  480 
cubic  inches  =188  grains  of  gas;  and  252-5+188  =440-5  ; 
then  440-5  :  188  :  :  100  :  42-68.  In  general  a  very  good  ap- 
proximation may  be  found  to  the  percentage  of  real  muriatic 
acid,  in  any  liquid  sample,  by  multiplying  the  decimal  figures 
of  the  specific  gravity  by  200.  Thus  for  example,  at  1-162 
we  shall  have  by  this  rule  0-162+200  =32-4,  for  the  quan- 
tity of  gas  in  100  parts  of  the  liquid.  Muriatic  acid  gas 
consists  of  chlorine  and  hydrogen  combined,  without  con- 
densation, in  equal  volumes.  Its  specific  gravity  is  1-247, 
air  =  1-000. 

By  sealing  up  muriate  of  ammonia  and  sulphuric  acid, 
apart,  in  a  strong  glass  tube  recurved,  and  then  causing 
them  to  act  on  each  other,  Sir  H.  Davy  procured  liquid 
muriatic  acid.  He  justly  observes,  that  the  generation  of 
elastic  substances  in  close  vessels,  either  with  or  without 
heat,  offers  much  more  powerful  means  of  approximating 
their  molecules  than  those  dependent  on  the  application  of 
cold,  whether  natural  or  artificial ;  for  as  gases  diminish 
only  in  volume  for  every  degree  of  Fahrenheit's  scale 
beginning  at  ordinary  temperatures,  a  very  slight  conden- 
sation only  can  be  produced  by  the  most  powerful  freezing 
mixtures,  not  half  as  much  as  would  result  from  the  appli- 
cation of  a  strong  flame  to  one  part  of  a  glass  tube,  the  other 
part  being  of  ordinary  temperature  ;  and  when  attempts  are 
made  to  condense  gases  into  liquids  by  sudden  mechanical 
compression,  the  heat  instantly  generated  presents  a  formi- 
dable obstacle  to  the  success  of  the  experiment ;  whereas 
in  the  compression  resulting  from  their  slow  generation  in 
close  vessels,  if  the  process  be  conducted  with  common  pre- 
cautions, there  is  no  source  of  difficulty  or  danger ;  and  it 


166 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


may  easily  be  assisted  by  artificial  cold,  in  cases  where  gases 
approach  near  to  that  point  of  compression  and  temperature 
at  which  they  become  vapors. 

The  muriatic  acid  of  commerce  has  usually  a  yellowish 
tinge,  but  when  chemically  pure,  it  is  colorless.  It  fumes 
strongly  in  the  air,  emitting  a  corrosive  vapor  of  a  peculiar 
smell.  The  characteristic  test  of  muriatic  acid  in  the  most 
dilute  state,  is  nitrate  of  silver,  which  causes  a  curdy  pre 
cipitate  of  chloride  of  silver. 

The  preparation  of  this  acid  upon  the  great  scale  is  fre- 
quently effected  by  acting  upon  sea-salt  in  hemispherical 
iron  pots,  or  in  cast-iron  cylinders,  with  concentrated  sul- 
phuric acid  ;  taking  6  parts  of  the  salt  to  5  of  the  acid.  The 
mouth  of  the  pot  may  be  covered  with  a  slab  of  silicious 
freestone,  perforated  with  two  holes  of  about  two  inches 
diameter  each,  into  the  one  of  which  the  acid  is  poured 
by  a  funnel  in  successive  portions,  and  into  the  other,  a 
bent  glass,  or  stone-ware  tube,  is  fixed,  for  conducting  the 
disengaged  muriatic  gas  into  a  series  of  large  globes  of  bottle 
glass,  one  third  filled  with  water,  and  laid  on  a  sloping  sand- 
bed.  A  week  is  commonly  employed  for  working  off  each 
pot ;  no  heat  being  applied  to  it  till  the  second  day. 

The  decomposition  of  sea-salt  by  sulphuric  acid,  was  at 
one  time  carried  on  by  some  French  manufacturers  in  large 
leaden  pans,  10  feet  long,  5  feet  broad,  and  a  foot  deep,  cov- 
ered with  sheets  of  lead,  and  luted.  The  disengaged  acid 
gas  was  made  to  circulate  in  a  conduit  of  glazed  bricks, 
nearly  650  yards  long,  where  it  was  condensed  by  a  sheet 
of  water  exceedingly  thin,  which  flowed  slowly  in  the  op- 
posite direction  of  the  gas  down  a  slope  of  1  in  200.  At  the 
end  of  this  canal  nearest  the  apparatus,  the  muriatic  acid 
was  as  strong  as  possible,  and  pretty  pure ;  but  towards  the 
other  end,  the  water  was  hardly  acidulous.  The  condensing 
part  of  this  apparatus  was  therefore  tolerably  complete ;  but 
as  the  decomposition  of  the  salt  could  not  be  finished  in  the 
leaden  pans,  the  acid  mixture  had  to  be  drawn  out  of  them, 
in  order  to  be  completely  decomposed  in  a  reverberatory 
furnace ;  in  this  way  nearly  50  per  cent,  of  the  muriatic  acid 


ACIDS. 


167 


was  lost.  And  besides,  the  great  quantity  of  gas  given  off 
during  the  emptying  of  the  lead-chambers  was  apt  to  suffo- 
cate the  workmen,  or  seriously  injured  their  lungs,  causing 
severe  hemoptysis.  The  employment  of  muriatic  acid  is  so 
inconsiderable,  and  the  loss  of  it  incurred  in  the  preceding 
process  is  of  so  little  consequence,  that  subsequently  both  in 
France  and  in  England,  sulphate  of  soda,  for  the  soda  manu- 
facture, has  been  procured  with  the  dissipation  of  the  muri- 
atic acid  in  the  air.  In  the  method  more  lately  resorted  to, 
the  gaseous  products  are  discharged  into  extensive  vaults, 
where  currents  of  water  condense  them  and  carry  them  off 
into  the  river.  The  surrounding  vegetation  is  thereby  saved 
in  some  measure  from  being  burned  up,  an  accident  which 
was  previously  sure  to  happen  when  fogs  precipitated  the 
floating  gases  upon  the  ground.  At  Newcastle,  Liverpool, 
and  Marseilles,  where  the  consumption  of  muriatic  acid  bears 
no  proportion  to  the  manufacture  of  soda,  this  process  is  now 
practised  upon  a  vast  scale,  to  extract  the  sulphate  of  soda, 
and  to  recommence  another  operation.  This  sulphate  ought 
to  be  white  and  uniform,  exhibiting  in  its  fracture  no  unde- 
composed  sea-salt.* 

Liquid  muriatic  acid  has  a  very  sour  corrosive  taste,  a  pun- 
gent suffocating  smell,  and  acts  very  powerfully  upon  a  vast 
number  of  mineral,  vegetable,  and  animal  substances.  It  is 
much  employed  for  making  many  metallic  solutions  ;  and  in 
combination  with  nitric  acid,  it  forms  the  aqua  regia  of  the 
alchemists,  so  called  from  its  property  of  dissolving  gold. — 
(See  Nitro- Muriatic  Acid.) 

*  Sulphate  of  soda  crystalizes  commonly  in  flat  four-sided  prisms,  the  faces  of 
which  are  channelled  longitudinally.    It  effloresces  very  speedily  when  exposed 
to  the  air ;  and  loses  all  its  water  of  crystalization  in  24  hours,  when  confined  in 
'  the  exhausted  receiver  of  an  air  pump,  with  sulphuric  acid.    Its  constituents  are 
1  atom  sulphuric  acid  5 
1  atom  soda  4 
10  atoms  water  11  25 

20-25 

There  is  usually  a  minute  quantity  of  water  lodged  mechanically  between  the 
plates  of  the  crystals.  This,  in  an  integrant  particle  of  the  salt,  may  amount  at  a 
maximum  to  0  03  parts,  which  constitutes  about  3  }  g  th  part  of  the  water  in  the  salt. 


168  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Table  of  Muriatic  Acid,  by  Dr.  Ure. 


Acid 
in  loo 

Specific 

Chlo- 

Muriat- 

Acid 
in  100 

Specific 

Chlo- 

Muriat- 

Acid 
in  100 

Specific 

Chlo- 

Muriat- 

gravity. 

rine. 

ic  Gas. 

gravity. 


rine. 

ic  Gas. 


Gravity. 

rine. 

ic  Gas. 

100 

12000 



39675 



40-777 

66 

11328 

26186 

26-913 

32 

1  0637 



12-697 



13049 

99 

1-1982 

39-278 

40369 

65 

11308 

25-789 

26505 

31 

10617 

12-300 

12-641 

98 

11964 

38-882 

39-961 

64 

11287 

25-392 

26098 

30 

1  0597 

11-903 

12-233 

97 

11946 

38-485 

39-554 

63 

11267 

24-996 

25690 

29 

1  0577 

11-506 

11-825 

96 

I  1928 

38089 

39146 

62 

I  1247 

24-599 

25-282 

28 

10557 

11109 

11-418 

95 

11910 

37-692 

38-738 

61 

1-1226 

24-202 

24-874 

27 

1  0537 

10-712 

11  010 

94 

1-1893 

37-296 

38-330 

60 

11206 

23-805 

24-466 

26 

10517 

10-316 

10-602 

93 

11875 

36-900 

37923 

59 

11185 

23-408 

24058 

25 

1.0497 

9-919 

10194 

92 

11857 

36-503 

37-516 

58 

11164 

23012 

23  050 

24 

1  0477 

9-522 

9-786 

91 

11846 

3G107 

37108 

57 

11143 

22615 

23-242 

23 

10457 

9- 126 

9-379 

90 

11822 

35-707 

36-700 

56 

11123 

22-218 

22-834 

22 

10437 

8-729 

8-971 

89 

11 802 

35310 

36  292 

55 

11102 

21-822 

22-426 

21 

10417 

8-332 

8-563 

88 

11782 

34-913 

35-884 

54 

11082 

21-425 

22019 

20 

1-0397 

7-935 

8.155 

87 

11762 

34-517 

35-476 

53 

1-1061 

21-028 

21-611 

19 

1-0377 

7-538 

7-747 

86 

11741 

34121 

35068 

52 

11041 

20-632 

21-203 

18 

1  0357 

7141 

7-340 

85 

11721 

33-724 

34-660 

51 

11020 

20-235 

20-796 

17 

1  0337 

6-745 

6-932 

84 

11701 

33-328 

34-252 

50 

11000 

19-837 

20-388 

16 

10318 

6-348 

6-524 

83 

11681 

32-931 

33-845 

49 

1-0980 

19-440 

19-980 

15 

1  0298 

5-951 

6116 

82 

11661 

32-535 

33-437 

48 

1-0960 

19044 

19-572 

14 

10279 

5-554 

5-709 

81 

11641 

32136 

33029 

47 

1-0939 

18-647 

19165 

13 

1  0259 

5158 

5-301 

80 

11620 

31-746 

32-621 

46 

10919 

18-250 

18-757 

12 

1  0239 

4-762 

4-893 

79 

11599 

31-343 

32-213 

45 

1-0899 

17-854 

18-349 

11 

10220 

4-365 

4-486 

78 

11578 

30-946 

31-805 

44 

1-0879 

17-457 

17941 

10 

1  0200 

3-968 

4-078 

77 

11 557 

30-550 

31-398 

43 

1  0859 

17060 

17534 

9 

10180 

3-571 

3-670 

76 

11536 

30-153 

1-0838 

16-664 

17-126 

g 

1  0160 

3-174 

3-262 

75 

1-1515 

29-757 

30-582 

41 

1-0818 

16-267 

16-718 

7 

1-0140 

2-778 

2-854 

74 

1-1494 

29-361 

30174 

40 

1-0798 

15-870 

16-310 

6 

10120 

2-381 

2-447 

73 

11473 

28-964 

29-767 

39 

1.0778 

15-474 

15-902 

5 

10100 

1-984 

2039 

72 

11452 

28-567 

29-359 

38 

1-0758 

15077 

15-494 

4 

10080 

1-588 

1-631 

71 

11431 

28- 171 

28-951 

37 

1-0738 

14-680 

15087 

3 

10060 

1191 

1-224 

70 

11410 

27-772 

28-544 

36 

1-0718 

14-284 

14-679 

2 

10040 

0-795 

0-816 

69 

11389 

27-376 

28136 

35 

1  0697 

13-887 

14-271 

1 

10020 

0-397 

0-408 

68 

11369 

26-979 

27-728 

34 

10677 

13-490 

13-863 

67 

11349 

26-583 

27321 

33 

1  0657 

13094 

13-456 

1 

N. 

NITRIC  ACID  (Aquafortis)  is  also  of  very  great  import- 
ance in  the  arts,  especially  in  dyeing  and  calico  printing.  It 
exists  extensively  in  combination  with  the  bases,  potash,  soda, 
lime,  magnesia,  in  both  the  mineral  and  vegetable  kingdoms. 
This  acid  is  never  found  insulated.  It  was  distilled  from  salt- 
petre so  long  ago  as  the  thirteenth  century,  by  igniting  that 
salt,  mixed  with  copperas  or  clay,  in  a  retort.  Nitric  acid  is 
generated  when  a  mixture  of  oxygen  and  nitrogen  gases, 
confined  over  water  or  an  alkaline  solution,  has  a  series  of 
electrical  explosions  passed  through  it.    In  this  way  the  salu- 


ACIDS. 


169 


brious  atmosphere  may  be  converted  into  corrosive  aquafortis. 
When  a  little  hydrogen  is  introduced  into  the  mixed  gases, 
standing  over  water,  the  chemical  agency  of  the  electricity 
becomes  more  intense,  and  the  acid  is  more  rapidly  formed 
from  its  elements,  with  the  production  of  some  nitrate  of  am- 
monia. 

Nitric  acid  is  usually  made  on  the  small  scale  by  distilling, 
with  the  heat  of  a  sand-bath,  a  mixture  of  three  parts  of  pure 
nitre,  and  two  parts  of  strong  sulphuric  acid,  in  a  large  glass 
retort,  connected  by  a  long  glass  tube  with  a  globular  receiver 
surrounded  by  cold  water.  By  a  well-regulated  distillation,  a 
pure  acid,  of  specific  gravity  1*500,  may  be  thus  obtained, 
amounting  in  weight  to  about  two-thirds  of  the  nitre  em- 
ployed. To  obtain  easily  the  whole  nitric  acid,  equal  weights 
of  nitre  and  concentrated  sulphuric  acid  may  be  taken ;  in 
which  case  but  a  moderate  heat  need  be  applied  to  the  retort. 
The  residuum  will  be  bisulphate  of  potash.  When  only  the 
single  equivalent  proportion  of  sulphuric  acid  is  used,  namely. 
48  parts  for  100  of  nitre,  a  much  higher  heat  is  required  to 
complete  the  distillation,  whereby  more  or  less  of  the  nitric 
acid  is  decomposed,  while  a  compact  neutral  sulphate  of  pot- 
ash is  left  in  the  retort,  very  difficult  to  remove  by  solution  in 
water,  and  therefore  apt  to  destroy  the  vessel. 

Aquafortis  is  manufactured  upon  the  great  scale  in  iron  pots 
or  cylinders  of  the  same  construction  as  described  under  mu- 
riatic acid.  The  more  concentrated  the  sulphuric  acid  is,  the 
less  corrosively  will  it  act  upon  the  metal ;  and  it  is  commonly 
used  in  the  proportion  of  one  part  by  weight  to  two  of  nitre. 
The  salt  being  introduced  into  the  cool  retort,  and  the  lid 
being  luted  tight,  the  acid  is  to  be  slowly  poured  in  through 
the  aperture  ;  the  aperture  being  connected  by  a  long 
glass  tube  with  a  range  of  balloons  inserted  into  each  other, 
and  laid  upon  a  sloping  bed  of  sand.  A  bottle,  with 
three  tubulures  partly  filled  with  water,  which  is  required 
for  condensing  muriatic  acid  gas,  must,  for  the  present  pur- 
pose, be  replaced  by  a  series  of  empty  receivers,  either  of 
glass  or  salt-glazed  stoneware.  The  cylinders  should  be  only 
half  filled,  and  be  worked  off  by  a  gradually  raised  heat. 

22 


170 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Commercial  aquafortis  is  very  generally  contaminated  with 
sulphuric  and  muriatic  acids,  as  also  with  alkaline  sulphates 
and  muriates.  The  quantity  of  these  salts  may  be  readily 
ascertained  by  evaporating  in  a  glass  capsule  a  given  weight 
of  the  aquafortis ;  while  that  of  the  muriatic  acid  may  be  de- 
termined by  nitrate  of  silver ;  and  of  sulphuric  acid,  by 
nitrate  of  baryta.  Aquafortis  may  be  purified  in  a  great 
measure,  by  re-distillation  at  a  gentle  heat ;  rejecting  the  first 
liquid  which  comes  over,  as  it  contains  the  chlorine  impregna- 
tion ;  receiving  the  middle  portion  as  genuine  nitric  acid  ;  and 
leaving  a  residuum  in  the  retort,  as  being  contaminated  with 
sulphuric  acid. 

Since  nitrate  of  soda  has  been  so  abundantly  imported  into 
Europe  from  Pern,  it  has  been  employed  by  many  manufac- 
turers in  preference  to  nitre  for  the  extraction  of  nitric  acid, 
because  it  is  cheaper,  and  because  the  residuum  of  the  distil- 
lation, being  sulphate  of  soda,  is  more  readily  removed  by 
solution  from  glass  retorts,  when  a  range  of  these  set  in  a 
gallery  furnace  is  the  apparatus  employed.  Nitric  acid  of 
specific  gravity  1*47  may  be  obtained  colorless ;  but  by  fur- 
ther concentration  a  portion  of  it  is  decomposed  whereby  some 
nitrous  acid  is  produced,  which  gives  it  a  straw-yellow  tinge. 
At  this  strength  it  exhales  white  or  orange  fumes,  which  have 
a  peculiar,  though  not  very  disagreeable  smell ;  and  even 
when  largely  diluted  with  water,  it  tastes  extremely  sour.* 
The  greatest  density  at  which  it  can  be  obtained  is  1-51  or 
perhaps  1-52,  at  60°  F.,  in  which  state,  or  even  when  much 
weaker,  it  powerfully  corrodes  all  animal,  vegetable,  and  most 
metallic  bodies.    When  slightly  diluted  it  is  applied,  with 

*  Nitric  acid  is  a  highly  corrosive  fluid,  and  acts  as  a  powerful  cautery  when  ap- 
plied to  the  skin,  which  it  stains  of  a  permanent  yellow.  It  is  decomposed,  with 
great  violence,  by  most  substances  which  have  an  affinity  for  oxygen ;  which  ele- 
ment enters  so  largely  into  its  composition.  If  it  be  brought  into  contact  with  hy- 
drogen, at  a  high  temperature,  a  violent  detonation  will  be  the  consequence;  but 
the  experiment  is  dangerous,  and  should  not  be  made  without  great  caution.  When 
poured  upon  warm  dry  charcoal,  in  powder,  combustion  ensues,  with  the  emission 
of  copious  fumes  of  deutoxide  of  nitrogen.  Spirits  of  turpentine  may  be  inflamed 
by  suddenly  pouring  nitric  acid  upon  it:  the  acid  should  be  poured  out  of  a  phial 
attached  to  a  long  stick,  or  there  would  be  danger  to  the  eyes  of  the  operator. 


ACIDS. 


171 


many  precautions,  to  silk  and  woolen  stuffs,  to  stain  them  of 
a  bright  yellow  hue. 

In  the  dry  state,  as  it  exists  in  nitre,  this  acid  consists  of 
26*15  parts  by  weight  of  azote,  and  73*85  of  oxygen ;  or  of  2 
volumes  of  the  first  gas,  and  5  volumes  of  the  second. 

When  of  specific  gravity  1*5,  it  boils  at  about  210°  Fahr. ; 
of  1*45,  it  boils  at  about  240°  ;  of  1*42,  it  boils  at  253°;  and 
of  1*40,  at  246°  F.  If  an  acid  stronger  than  1*420  be  dis- 
tilled in  a  retort,  it  gradually  becomes  weaker  ;  and  if  weaker 
than  1*42,  it  gradually  becomes  stronger,  till  it  assumes  that 
standard  density.  Acid  of  specific  gravity  1*485  has  no  more 
action  upon  tin  than  water  has,  though  when  either  stronger 
or  weaker  it  oxidizes  it  rapidly,  and  evolves  fumes  of  nitrous 
gas  with  explosive  violence. 

In  two  papers,  by  Dr.  Ure,  upon  nitric  acid,  published  in 
the  fourth  and  sixth  volumes  of  the  Journal  of  Science  (1818 
and  1819),  he  investigated  the  chemical  relations  of  these  phe- 
nomena, and  obtained  the  following  results : — Acid  of  1*420 
consists  of  1  atom  of  dry  acid,  and  4  of  water;  acid  of  1*485, 
of  1  atom  of  dry  acid,  and  2  of  water ;  the  latter  compound 
possesses  a  stable  equilibrium  as  to  chemical  agency ;  the  for- 
mer as  to  calorific.  Acid  of  specific  gravity  1*334,  consisting 
of  7  atoms  of  water,  and  1  of  dry  acid,  resists  the  decompos- 
ing agency  of  light.  Nitric  acid  acts  with  great  energy  upon 
most  combustible  substances,  simple  or  compound,  giving  up 
oxygen  to  them,  and  resolving  itself  into  nitrous  gas,*  or  even 
azote.t  Such  is  the  result  of  its  action  upon  hydrogen,  phos- 
phorus, sulphur,  charcoal,  sugar,  gum,  starch,  silver,  mercury, 
copper,  iron,  tin,  and  most  other  metals. 

*  When  nitric  acid  is  quite  free  from  nitrous  gas,  it  is  colorless,  and  nearly  as 
limpid  as  water ;  but  the  presence  of  this  gas  gives  it  a  yellow,  a  red,  or  a  brown 
color,  according  to  its  quantity. 

t  It  appears  from  an  experiment,  made  by  Dr.  Thomson,  that  8  65  grains  of  salt- 
petre contain  4- 004  cubic  inches  of  azotic  gas.  Now,  as  nitre  is  a  compound  of  6 
potash  and  6  75  nitric  acid — and  as  nitric  acid  is  a  compound  of  175  azote  and  5 
oxygen — it  is  obvious,  that  8  65  grains  of  nitre  contain 

Azote  1  187254  gr.  or  4  00386  cubic  inches. 
Oxygen  3-392155  .    .  10  00960  cubic  inches. 


4-579410 


172  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


A  Table  of  Nitric  Acid,  by  Dr.  Ure. 


Specific 
Gravity. 

Liq. 
Acid 
in  100 

Dry  acid 
in  100. 

Specific 
gravity. 

Liq. 
Acid 
in  100 

Dry  acid 
in  .100. 

Specific 
gravity. 

Acid 
in  100 

Dry  acid 
in  100. 

Specific 
gravity. 

Acid 
in  100 

Dry  acid 
in  100. 

1-5000 

100 

79-700 

1-4189 

75 

59-775 

1-2947 

50 

39-850 

11 403 

25 

19-925 

1-4980 

99 

78-903 

1-4147 

74 

58-978 

1-2887 

49 

39053 

11345 

24 

19- 128 

1-4960 

98 

78-106 

1-4107 

73 

58-181 

1-2826 

48 

38-256 

1-1286 

23 

18-331 

1-4940 

97 

77-309 

1-4065 

72 

57-384 

1-2765 

47 

37-459 

1-1227 

22 

17-534 

1-4910 

96 

76  512 

1-4023 

71 

56-587 

1-2705 

46 

36-662 

11168 

21 

16-737 

1-4880 

95 

75-715 

1-3978 

70 

55-790 

1-2644 

45 

35-865 

11109 

20 

15-940 

1-4850 

94 

74-918 

1-3945 

69 

54-993 

1-2583 

44 

35068 

11051 

19 

15143 

1-4820 

93 

74121 

1-3882 

68 

54-196 

1-2523 

43 

34-271 

10993 

18 

14-346 

1-4790 

92 

73-324 

1-3833 

67 

53-399 

1-2462 

42 

33-474 

1  0935 

17 

13-549 

1-4760 

91 

72-527 

1-3783 

66 

52-602 

1-2402 

41 

32-677 

1-0878 

16 

12-752 

1-4730 

90 

71  -730 

1-3732 

65 

51-805 

1-2341 

40 

31-880 

1  0821 

15 

H-955 

1-4700 

89 

70  933 

1-3681 

64 

51-068  I 

1-2277 

39 

31083 

1  0764 

14 

11158 

1-4670 

88 

70- 136 

1-3630 

63 

50-211  i 

1-2212 

38 

30-286 

10708 

13 

10-361 

1-4640 

87 

69-339 

1-3579 

62 

49-414 

1-2148 

37 

29-489 

10651 

12 

9-564 

1-4600 

86 

68-542 

1-3529 

61 

48-617 

1-2084 

36 

28-692 

10595 

It 

8-767 

1-4570 

85 

67-745 

1-3477 

60 

47-820 

1-2019 

35 

27-895 

10540 

10 

7-970 

1-4530 

84 

66-948 

1-3427 

59 

47023 

11958 

34 

27-098 

1-0485 

9 

7173 

1-4500 

83 

66- 155 

1-3376 

58 

46-226 

11895 

33 

26-301 

10430 

8 

6-376 

1-4460 

82 

65-354 

1-3323 

57 

45-429 

11833 

32 

25-504 

10375 

7 

5-579 

1-4424 

81 

64-557 

1-3270 

56 

44-632 

11770 

31 

24-707 

10320 

6 

4-782 

1-4385 

80 

63-760 

1-3216 

55 

43-835 

11709 

30 

23-900 

10267 

5 

3-985 

1-4346 

79 

62-963 

1-3163 

54 

43038 

1-1648 

29 

23113 

10212 

4 

3-188 

1-4306 

78 

62-166 

1-3110 

53 

42-241 

1-1587 

28 

22-316 

10159 

3 

2-391 

1-4269 

.77 

61-369 

1-3056 

52 

41-444 

11526 

27 

21-519 

10106 

2 

1-594 

1-4228 

76 

60-572 

1-3001 

51 

40-647 

11465 

26 

20-722 

10053 

1 

0-797 

NITRO-MURIATIC  ACID  (Aqua  Regia).-To  this  com- 
pound acid,  the  name  aqua  regia  has  been  given,  because  it 
has  the  property  of  dissolving  gold,  which  was  called  the  king 
of  metals.  But  it  should  be  regarded  as  a  mixture  of  muri- 
atic acid  and  nitric  acid,  which  combine  their  forces  to  effect 
solutions  which  they  could  not  separately  do.  If  strong 
nitric  acid,  orange  colored  by  saturation  with  nitrous  gas 
(deutoxyde  of  azote),  be  mixed  with  the  strongest  liquid  mu- 
riatic acid,  no  other  effect  is  produced  than  might  be  expected 
from  the  action  of  nitrous  acid  of  the  same  strength  upon  an 
equal  quantity  of  water ;  nor  has  the  mixed  acid  so  formed 
any  power  of  acting  upon  gold  or  platina.  But  if  colorless 
aqua  fortis  and  ordinary  muriatic  acid  be  mixed  together,  the 
mixture  immediately  becomes  yellow,  and  acquires  the  power 
of  dissolving  these  two  noble  metals.  When  gently  heated, 
pure  chlorine  gas  rises  from  it,  and  its  color  becomes  deeper ; 
when  further  heated,  chlorine  still  rises,  but  now  mixed  with 
nitrous  acid  gas.    If  the  process  has  been  very  long  con- 


ACIDS. 


173 


turned,  till  the  color  becomes  very  dark,  no  more  chlorine  can 
be  procured,  and  the  liquor  has  lost  the  power  of  dissolving 
gold.  It  then  consists  of  nitrous  and  muriatic  acids.  It  ap- 
pears, therefore,  that  aqua  regia  owes  its  peculiar  properties 
to  the  mutual  decomposition  of  the  nitric  and  muriatic  acids ; 
and  that  water,  chlorine,  and  nitrous  acid  gas  are  the  results 
of  that  reaction.  Aqua  regia  does  not,  strictly  speaking, 
oxidize  gold  and  platinum ;  it  causes  merely  their  combina- 
tion with  chlorine. 

Nitro-muriatic  acid  may  be  prepared,  either  by  simple  mix- 
ture of  the  nitric  and  muriatic  acids,  or  by  dissolving  muriate 
of  ammonia  or  of  soda  in  nitric  acid.  Other  salts  might  be 
made  use  of,  for  example  nitre  (nitrate  of  potash),  which 
might  be  dissolved  in  muriatic  acid. 

o. 

OXALIC  ACID. — This  is  one  of  the  most  important  of 
all  the  combustible  acids  as  far  as  chemical  analysis  is  con- 
cerned.* It  is  usually  prepared  upon  the  small  scale  by  di- 
gesting four  parts  of  nitric  acid  of  specific  gravity  1-4,  upon 
one  part  of  sugar,  in  a  glass  retort ;  but  on  the  large  scale,  in 
a  series  of  salt-glazed  stoneware  pipkins,  two-thirds  filled, 
and  set  in  a  water  bath.  The  addition  of  a  little  sulphuric 
acid  has  been  found  to  increase  the  product.  15  pounds  of 
sugar  yield  fully  17  pounds  of  the  crystaline  acid.  This  acid 
exists  in  the  juice  of  wood  sorrel,  the  oxalis  acetosella,  in  the 
state  of  a  bioxalate ;  from  which  the  salt  is  extracted  as  an 
object  of  commerce  in  Switzerland,  and  sold  under  the  name 
of  salt  of  sorrel,  or  sometimes,  most  incorrectly,  under  that  of 
salt  of  lemons. 

Some  prefer  to  make  oxalic  acid  by  acting  upon  4  parts  of 
sugar,  with  24  parts  of  nitric  acid  of  specific  gravity  1-220 
heating  the  solution  in  a  retort  till  the  acid  begins  to  decom- 


*  Oxalic  acid  is  employed  chiefly  for  certain  styles  of  discharge  in  calico-print- 
ing, and  for  whitening  the  leather  of  boot-tops.  It  is  also  used  in  scouring-  opera- 
tions.— (See  chapter  IV.  Part  V.) 


174 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


pose,  and  keeping  it  at  this  temperature  as  long  as  nitrous 
gas  is  disengaged.  The  sugar  loses  a  portion  of  its  carbon, 
which,  combining  with  the  oxygen  of  the  nitric  acid,  becomes 
carbonic  acid,  and  escapes  along  with  the  deutoxide  of  nitro- 
gen. The  remaining  carbon  and  hydrogen  of  the  sugar 
being  oxidized  at  the  expense  of  the  nitric  acid,  generate  a 
mixture  of  two  acids,  the  oxalic  and  the  malic.  Whenever 
gas  ceases  to  issue,  the  retort  must  be  removed  from  the 
source  of  heat,  and  set  aside  to  cool ;  the  oxalic  acid  crystal- 
izes,  but  the  malic  remains  dissolved.  After  draining  these 
crystals  upon  a  filter  funnel,  if  the  brownish  liquid  be  further 
evaporated,  it  will  furnish  another  crop  of  them.  The  resid- 
uary mother  water  is  generally  regarded  as  malic  acid,  but 
it  also  contains  both  oxalic  and  nitric  acids ;  and  if  heated 
with  6  parts  of  the  latter  acid,  it  will  yield  a  good  deal  more 
oxalic  acid  at  the  expense  of  the  malic.  The  brown  crystals 
now  formed  being,  however,  penetrated  with  nitric,  as  well 
as  malic  acid,  must  be  allowed  to  dry  and  effloresce  in  warm 
dry  air,  whereby  the  nitric  acid  will  be  got  rid  of  without  in- 
jury to  the  oxalic.  A  second  crystalization  and  efflorescence 
will  entirely  dissipate  the  remainder  of  the  nitric  acid,  so  as 
to  afford  pure  oxalic  acid  at  the  third  crystalization.  Sugar 
affords,  with  nitric  acid,  a  purer  oxalic  acid,  but  in  smaller 
quantity,  than  saw-dust,  glue,  silk,  hairs,  and  several  o,ther 
animal  and  vegetable  substances. 

Oxalic  acid  occurs  in  aggregated  prisms  when  it  crystalizes 
rapidly,  but  in  tables  of  greater  or  less  thickness  when  slowly 
formed.  They  lose  their  water  of  crystalization  in  the  open 
air,  fall  into  powder,  and  weigh  0*28  less  than  before ;  but 
still  retain  0-14  parts  of  water,  which  the  acid  does  not  part 
with  except  in  favor  of  another  oxide,  as  when  it  is  com- 
bined with  oxide  of  lead.  The  effloresced  acid  contains  20 
per  cent,  of  water,  according  to  Berzelius.  By  an  analysis 
made  by  Dr.  Ure,  the  crystals  consist  of  three  prime  equiva- 
lents, of  water  =  27,  combined  with  one  of  dry  oxalic  acid  = 
36 ;  or  in  100  parts,  of  42-86  of  water  with  5744  of  acid. 
The  acid  itself  consists  of  2  atoms  of  carbon  =  12,  -f-  3  of 
oxygen  =24;  of  which  the  sum  is,  as  above  stated,  36. 


ACIDS.  175 

This  acid  has  a  sharp  sour  taste,  and  sets  the  teeth  on  edge ; 
half  a  pint  of  water,  containing  only  1  gr.  of  acid,  very  sen- 
sibly reddens  litmus  paper.  Nine  parts  of  water  dissolve  one 
part  of  the  crystals  at  60°  F.,  and  form  a  solution,  of  spec, 
grav.  1*045,  which  when  swallowed  acts  as  a  deadly  poison. 
Alcohol  also  dissolves  this  acid.  It  differs  from  all  the  other 
acid  products  of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  in  containing  no 
hydrogen,  which  fact  has  been  demonstrated  (by  Berzelius) 
by  its  giving  out  no  muriatic  acid  gas,  when  heated  in  a 
glass  tube  with  calomel  or  corrosive  sublimate.* 

The  apparent  figure  of  the  crystals  of  oxalic  acid  is  a  flat 
four-sided  prism ;  but  Mr.  Brooke  informs  us  that  the  pri- 
mary form  is  an  oblique  rhombic  prism.  The  rhombic  base, 
to  the  unexperienced  eye,  passes  for  one  of  the  sides  of  the 
flat  prism  ;  and  as  the  crystal  is  usually  attached  by  one  of 
its  sides,  two  of  the  lateral  faces  appear  to  the  eye  as  the 
dihedral  summit.  Two  of  the  opposite  lateral  edges  are 
usually  deeply  truncated,  which  makes  the  prism  six-sided 
instead  of  four-sided.t  These  crystals  being  always  in  the 
same  state,  it  is  of  importance  to  know  with  precision  the 
weight  of  them  capable  of  neutralizing  an  atom  of  each  of 
the  bases.  The  following  experiments  were  made  by  Dr. 
Thomson,  to  determine  this  point : — 

Nine  grains  of  crystals  of  oxalic  acid  were  dissolved  in 
distilled  water,  neutralized  by  ammonia,  and  evaporated  to 
dryness  by  a  very  gentle  heat,  in  order  to  get  rid  of  all  excess 
of  ammonia.  The  oxalate  of  ammonia,  thus  formed,  was 
redissolved  in  water. 

6-25  grains  of  pure  calcareous  spar  were  dissolved  in  very 
dilute  muriatic  acid ;  the  solution  was  slowly  evaporated  to 
dryness,  twice  successively,  in  order  to  drive  off  any  excess 
of  acid  which  might  have  been  present ;  and  the  muriate  of 
lime,  thus  rendered  neutral,  was  redissolved  in  water. 

These  two  solutions  being  mixed  together,  a  double  decom- 
position took  place,  and  the  insoluble  oxalate  of  lime  gradu- 


♦  Ann.  de  Chim.  et  de  Phys.  xviii.  155. 

t  Annals  of  Philosophy,  (second  series)  VI.  119. 


176 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ally  precipitated  to  the  bottom,  leaving  a  clear  and  transpa- 
rent liquor,  containing  in  solution  the  muriate  of  ammonia 
formed  by  the  mutual  decomposition  of  the  two  salts.  This 
liquid,  being  tested  by  oxalate  of  ammonia  and  by  muriate 
of  lime,  was  not  affected  by  either  of  these  reagents,  showing 
that  it  contained  no  sensible  quantity  either  of  lime  or  of 
oxalic  acid. 

Oxalate  of  ammonia  is  an  excellent  reagent  for  detecting 
lime  and  its  salts  in  any  solution.  The  acid  itself,  or  the 
bi-oxalate  of  potash,  is  often  used  for  removing  ink  or  iron- 
mould  stains  from  linen. — (See  chapter  IV.,  Part  Y.) 

Dr.  Turner  having  lately  examined  the  volatility  of  oxalic 
acid,  finds  the  substance  to  rise  at  temperature  so  low  as  212° 
without  undergoing  any  chemical  change,  except  that  the 
common  crystals  lose  two-thirds  or  two  equivalents  of  their 
water  of  crystalization.  If  ordinary  oxalic  acid  be  placed  in 
a  water  bath,  and  heated,  it  effloresces,  losing  nearly  the  pro- 
portion of  water  mentioned ;  if  exposed  to  the  cold  air,  it 
recovers  the  water?  but  if  continued  hot,  it  sublimes,  and 
minute  acicular  crystals  form  on  the  surface.  If  purified 
oxalic  acid  in  crystals  be  exposed  to  350°  or  400°,  in  a  deep 
evaporating  basin,  and  when  sublimation  begins,  the  vessel 
be  covered  by  a  layer  of  smooth  filtering  paper,  a  fold  of  blot- 
ting paper,  and  a  larger  evaporating  basin  containing  cold 
water,  the  oxalic  acid  condenses  in  crystals  on  the  filtering 
paper,  or  falls  on  the  side  of  the  dish,  and  after  an  hour  may 
be  removed,  and  quickly  secured  in  a  stoppered  bottle.  Thus 
sublimed,  the  acid  is  in  minute  shining  acicular  crystals, 
which,  on  exposure  to  air,  become  dull,  and  regain  the  two 
equivalents  of  water. 

At  higher  temperatures  the  sublimation  proceeds  more 
rapidly.  At  300°  or  330°,  none  is  decomposed.  At  360°  or 
400°,  the  sublimation  is  very  free ;  at  414°  it  fuses,  and  boils 
freely  ;  above  330°,  decomposition  to  a  greater  or  smaller  ex- 
tent occurs,  and  is  indicated  by  the  appearance  of  water.  By 
combining  the  sublimed  acid  with  bases,  &c.  &c.  its  un- 
changed nature  was  ascertained. 

Dr.  Turner  found  that  a  saturated  solution  of  oxalic  acid 


ACIDS. 


177 


at  the  temperature  of  50°,  contained  1  part  crystalized  acid, 
and  1.55  parts  water.  At  57°,  9.5  parts  of  water  dissolved  1 
part  of  crystalized  acid.  At  212°,  the  quantity  of  acid  dis- 
solved is  almost  unlimited ;  at  220°  the  crystals  fuse  in  the 
water  of  crystalization. 

P. 

PYROLIGNEOUS  ACID  (or  Wood  Vinegar).— The  pro- 
cess for  making  this  acid  is  founded  upon  the  general  prop- 
erty of  heat,  to  separate  the  elements  of  vegetable  substances, 
and  to  unite  them  anew  in  another  order,  with  the  production 
of  compounds  which  did  not  exist  in  the  bodies  subjected  to 
its  action.  The  respective  proportion  of  these  products  varies, 
not  only  in  the  different  substances,  but  also  in  the  same  sub- 
stance, according  as  the  degree  of  heat  has  been  greater  or 
less,  or  conducted  with  more  or  less  skill.  When  we  distill  a 
vegetable  body  in  a  close  vessel,  we  obtain  at  first  the  in- 
cluded water,  or  that  of  vegetation ;  there  is  next  formed 
another  portion  of  water,  at  the  expense  of  the  oxygen  and 
hydrogen  of  the  body  ;  a  proportional  quantity  of  charcoal  is 
set  free,  and,  with  the  successive  increase  of  the  heat,  a  small 
portion  of  charcoal  combines  with  the  oxygen  and  hydrogen 
to  form  acetic  acid.  This  was  considered,  for  some  time,  as 
a  peculiar  acid,  and  was  accordingly  called  pyroligneous 
acid.  As  the  proportion  of  carbon  becomes  preponderant,  it 
combines  with  the  other  principles,  and  then  some  empyreu- 
matic  oil  is  volatilized,  of  little  color,  but  which  becomes 
thicker,  and  of  a  darker  tint,  always  getting  more  loaded  with 
carbon. 

In  an  establishment  near  Manchester,  where  this  acid  is 
manufactured  on  a  large  scale,  the  retorts  are  of  cast-iron, 
6  feet  long,  and  3  feet  8  inches  in  diameter.  Two  of  these 
cylinders  are  heated  by  one  fire;  the  flame  of  which  plays 
round  their  sides  and  upper  surface ;  but  the  bottom  is 
shielded  by  fire-tiles  from  the  direct  action  of  the  fire.  2 
cwts.  of  coals  are  sufficient  to  complete  the  distillation  of 
one  charge  of  wood ;  36  imperial  gallons  of  crude  vinegar, 

23 


178 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  specific  gravity  1*025,  being  obtained  from  each  retort. 
The  process  occupies  24  hours.  The  retort-mouth  is  then 
removed,  and  the  ignited  charcoal  is  raked  out  for  extinction 
into  an  iron  chest,  having  a  groove  round  its  edges,  into 
which  a  lid  is  fitted. 

When  this  pyroligneous  acid  is  saturated  with  quicklime, 
and  distilled,  it  yields  one  per  cent,  of  pyroxilic  spirit  (some- 
times called  naptha) ;  which  is  rectified  by  two  or  three  suc- 
cessive distillations  with  quicklime. 

The  tarry  deposite  of  the  crude  pyroligneous  acid,  being 
subjected  to  distillation  by  itself,  affords  a  crude  pyro-acetic 
ether,  which  may  also  be  purified  by  re-distillation  with 
quicklime,  and  subsequent  agitation  with  water. 

The  pyrolignite  of  lime  is  made  by  boiling  the  pyrolig- 
neous acid  in  a  large  copper,  which  has  a  sloping  spout  at 
its  lip,  by  which  the  tarry  scum  freely  flows  over,  as  it  froths 
up  with  the  heat.  The  fluid  compound  thus  purified  is 
syphoned  off  into  another  copper,  and  mixed  with  a  quan- 
tity of  alum  equivalent  to  its  strength,  in  order  to  form  the 
red  liquor,  or  acetate  of  alumina,  of  the  calico  printer.  The 
acetate  of  lime,  and  sulphate  of  alumina  and  potash,  mutu- 
ally decompose  each  other;  with  the  formation  of  sulphate 
of  lime,  which  falls  immediately  to  the  bottom. 

M.  Kestner,  of  Thann,  in  Alsace,  obtains,  in  his  manu- 
factory of  pyroligneous  acid,  5  hectolitres  (112  gallons  im- 
perial, nearly)  from  a  cord  containing  93  cubic  feet  of  wood. 
The  acid  is  very  brown,  much  loaded  with  tar,  and  marks 
5°  Baume  ;  220  kilogrammes  of  charcoal  are  left  in  the 
cylinders ;  500  litres  of  that  brown  acid  produce,  after  sev- 
eral distillations,  375  of  the  pyroligneous  acid  of  commerce, 
containing  7  per  cent,  of  acid,  with  a  residuum  of  40  kilo- 
grammes of  pitch.  For  the  purpose  of  making  a  crude 
acetate  of  lead  (pyrolignite)  he  dries  pyrolignite  of  lime 
upon  iron  plates,  mixes  it  with  the  equivalent  decomposing 
quantity  of  sulphuric  acid,  previously  diluted  with  its  own 
weight  of  water,  and  cooled ;  and  transfers  the  mixture  as 
quickly  as  possible  into  a  cast-iron  cylindric  still,  built  hori- 
zontally in  a  furnace ;  the  under  half  of  the  mouth  of  the 


ACIDS. 


179 


cylinder  being  always  cast  with  a  semicircle  of  iron.  The 
acetic  acid  is  received  into  large  salt-glazed  stone  bottles. 
From  100  parts  of  acetate  of  lime,  he  obtains  133  of  acetic 
acid,  at  38°  Baume.  It  contains  always  a  little  sulphurous 
acid  from  the  reaction  of  the  tar  and  the  sulphuric  acid. 

s. 

SULPHURIC  ACID  (Vitriolic  Acid,  or  Oil  of  Vitriol).— 
This  acid  has  been  known  ever  since  the  seventh  century,* 
and  of  all  the  acids  is  most  extensively  used  in  the  arts, 
and  is,  in  fact,  the  primary  agent  for  obtaining  almost  all 
the  others,  by  disengaging  them  from  their  saline  combi 
nations.  In  this  way,  nitric,  muriatic,  tartaric,  acetic,  and 
many  other  acids,  are  procured.  It  is  employed  in  the 
direct  formation  of  alum,  of  trie  sulphates  of  copper,  zinc, 
potassa,  soda ;  in  that  of  sulphuric  ether,  of  sugar  by  the 
sacchariflcation  of  starch,  and  in  the  preparation  of  phos- 
phorus, &c.  It  serves  also  for  opening  the  pores  of  skins 
in  tanning,  for  clearing  the  surfaces  of  metals,  for  deter- 
mining the  nature  of  several  salts  by  the  acid  characters 
that  are  disengaged,  &c. 

There  are  several  ways  of  procuring  this  acid,  but  we 
shall  only  give  the  most  approved  methods,  as  practised  in 
the  best  chemical  works.  This  acid  was  formerly  procured 
by  the  distillation  of  dried  sulphate  of  iron,  called  green 
vitriol,  whence  the  corrosive  liquid  which  came  over,  having 
an  oily  consistence,  was  denominated  oil  of  vitriol.  This 
method  has  been  superseded  in  Great  Britain,  France,  and 
most  other  countries,  by  the  combustion  of  sulphur  along 
with  nitre,  in  large  leaden  chambers. 

The  production  of  sulphuric  acid  from  sulphur  and  nitre 
may  be  elegantly  illustrated  by  means  of  a  glass  globe  with 
a  stoppered  hole  at  its  side,  and  four  bent  glass  tubes  inserted 
into  a  leaden  cap  in  its  upper  orifice.  The  first  tube  is  to 
be  connected  with  a  heated  matrass,  disengaging  sulphurous 


*  Mention  is  often  made  of  Vinegar  in  the  Old  Testament. 


180 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


acid  from  copper  filings  and  sulphuric  acid ;  the  second  with 
a  retort,  disengaging  more  slowly  deutoxide  of  azote  (nitric 
oxide)  from  copper  filings  and  nitric  acid;  the  third  with  a 
vessel  for  furnishing  steam  in  a  moderate  current  towards 
the  end  of  the  process,  when  no  water  has  been  previously 
admitted  into  the  balloon ;  the  fourth  tube  may  be  upright, 
and  terminate  in  a  small  funnel.  Through  the  opening  in 
the  side  of  the  globe,  atmospherical  air  is  to  be  admitted  from 
time  to  time,  by  removing  the  stopper ;  after  which,  the  re- 
siduary lighter  azote  may  be  allowed  to  escape  by  the  funnel 
orifice. 

M.  M.  Clement  and  Desormes  have  shown  that  nitrous 
acid  gas  and  sulphurous  acid  gas  mixed,  react  on  each  other 
through  the  intervention  of  moisture;  that  there  resulted 
thence  a  combination  of  sulphuric  acid,  deutoxide  of  azote 
(nitrous  gas),  and  water ;  that  this  crystaline  compound  was 
instantly  destroyed  by  more  water,  with  the  separation  of 
the  sulphuric  acid  in  a  liquid  state,  and  the  disengagement 
of  nitrous  gas ;  that  this  gas  re-constituted  nitrous  acid  at 
the  expense  of  the  atmospheric  oxygen  of  the  leaden  cham- 
•  ber,  and  thus  brought  matters  to  their  primary  condition. 
From  this  point,  starting  again,  the  particles  of  sulphur  in 
the  sulphurous  acid,  through  the  agency  of  water,  became 
fully  oxygenated  by  the  nitrous  acid,  and  fell  down  in  heavy 
drops  of  sulphuric  acid,  while  the  nitrous  gas  derived  from 
the  nitrous  acid,  had  again  recourse  to  the  air  for  its  lost 
dose  of  oxygen.  This  beautiful  interchange  of  the  oxyge- 
nous principle  was  found  to  go  on,  in  their  experiments,  till 
either  the  sulphurous  acid,  or  oxygen  in  the  air,  was  ex- 
hausted. 

They  verified  this  proposition,  with  regard  to  what  occurs 
in  sulphuric  acid  chambers,  by  mixing  in  a  crystal  globe  the 
three  substances,  deutoxide  of  azote,  sulphurous  acid,  and 
atmospheric  air.  The  immediate  production  of  red  vapors 
indicated  the  transformation  of  the  deutoxide  into  nitrous 
acid  gas  ;  and  now  the  introduction  of  a  very  little  water 
caused  the  proper  reaction,  for  opaque  vapors  rose,  which  de- 
posited white  star-form  crystals  on  the  surface  of  the  glass. 


ACIDS.  181 

The  gases  were  once  more  transparent  and  colorless ;  but 
another  addition  of  water  melted  these  crystals  with  effer- 
vescence, when  ruddy  vapors  appeared.  In  this  manner  the 
phenomena  were  made  to  alternate,  till  the  oxygen  of  the 
included  air  was  expended,  or  all  the  sulphurous  acid  was 
converted  into  sulphuric.  The  residuary  gases  were  found 
to  be  nitrous  acid  gas  and  azote,  without  sulphurous  acid 
gas;  while  unctuous  sulphuric  acid  bedewed  the  inner  sur- 
face of  the  globe.  Hence  they  justly  concluded  their  new 
theory  of  the  manufacture  of  oil  of  vitriol  to  be  demonstrated. 
In  consequence  of  their  discovery,  the  manufacture  of  this 
acid  has  received  such  improvements,  that  a  nearly  double 
product  of  it  may  now  be  obtained  from  the  same  weight 
of  materials.  Indeed,  the  economy  may  be  reckoned  to  be 
much  greater ;  for  one  half  of  the  more  costly  ingredient, 
the  nitre,  formerly  employed  with  a  given  weight  of  sulphur, 
suffices  at  present. 

M.  Clement  demonstrated  the  proposition  relative  to  the 
influence  of  temperature  by  a  decisive  experiment.  He  took 
a  glass  globe,  furnished  with  three  tubulures,  and  put  a  bit  of 
ice  into  it.  Through  the  first  opening  he  then  introduced 
sulphurous  acid  gas ;  through  the  second,  oxygen ;  and 
through  the  third,  nitrous  gas  (deutoxide  of  azote).  While 
the  globe  was  kept  cool,  by  being  plunged  in  iced  water,  no 
sulphuric  acid  was  formed,  though  all  the  ingredients  essen- 
tial to  its  production  were  present.  But  on  exposing  the 
globe  to  a  temperature  of  100°  Fahr.,  the  four  bodies  began 
immediately  to  react  on  each  other,  and  oil  of  vitriol  was 
condensed  in  visible  sir  ice. 

The  introduction  of  steam  is  a  modern  invention,  which 
has  vastly  facilitated  and  increased  the  production  of  oil  of 
vitriol.  It  serves,  by  powerful  agitation,  not  only  to  mix  the 
different  gaseous  molecules  intimately  together,  but  to  impel 
them  against  each  other,  and  thus  bring  them  within  the 
sphere  of  their  mutual  chemical  attraction.  This  is  its  me- 
chanical effect.  Its  chemical  agency  is  still  more  important. 
By  supplying  moisture  at  every  point  of  the  immense  in- 
cluded space,  it  determines  the  formation  of  hydrous  sul- 


182 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


phuric  acid,  from  the  compound  of  nitric,  nitrous,  sulphurous, 
and  dry  sulphuric  acids.  No  sooner  is  this  reaction  accom- 
plished, than  the  nitrous  gas  resumes  its  oxygen,  from  the 
continuous  atmospherical  current,  and  becomes  again  fit  to 
operate  a  like  round  of  transmutations  with  sulphurous  acid, 
steam,  and  oxygen.  The  nitrogen  (azote),  which  ought  to 
be  the  only  residuum  in  a  perfectly  regulated  vitriol  chamber, 
escapes,  by  its  relative  lightness,  at  the  opening  in  the  roof, 
or,  more  properly  speaking,  is  displaced  by  the  influx  of  the 
heavier  gases  at  the  entrance-pipe. 

On  the  intermittent  plan,  after  the  consumption  of  each 
charge,  and  condensation  of  the  product,  the  chamber  was 
opened,  and  freely  ventilated,  so  as  to  expel  the  residuary 
azote,  and  replenish  it  with  fresh  atmospheric  air.  In  this 
system  there  were  four  distinct  stages  or  periods : — 1.  Com- 
bustion for  two  hours ;  2.  Admission  of  steam,  and  settling, 
for  an  hour  and  a  half ;  3.  Conversion,  for  three  hours,  during 
which  interval  the  drops  of  strong  acid  were  heard  falling 
like  heavy  hailstones  on  the  bottom  ;  4.  Purging  of  the 
chamber,  for  three  quarters  of  an  hour. 

By  the  continuous  method,  sulphuric  acid  may  be  currently 
obtained  in  the  chambers,  of  the  specific  gravity  1-350,  or 
1-450  at  most ;  for,  when  stronger,  it  absorbs  and  retains  per- 
manently much  nitrous  acid  gas  ;  but  by  the  intermittent,  so 
dense  as  1-550,  or  even  1*620;  whence  in  a  district  where  fuel 
is  high  priced,  as  near  Paris,  this  method  recommended  itself 
by  economy  in  the  concentration  of  the  acid.  In  Great 
Britain,  and  even  in  most  parts  of  France,  however, 
where  time,  workmen's  wages,  and  interest  of  capital, 
are  the  paramount  considerations,  manufacturers  do  not  find 
it  for  their  interest  in  general  to  raise  the  density  of  the  acid 
in  the  chambers  above  1*400,  or  at  most  1*500 ;  as  the  further 
increase  goes  on  at  a  retarded  rate,  and  its  concentration  from 
1-400  to  1-600,  in  leaden  pans,  costs  very  little. 

At  about  the  specific  gravity  of  1-35,  in  Great  Britain,  the 
liquid  of  the  chambers  is  run  off,  by  the  syphon  above  de- 
scribed, into  a  leaden  gutter  or  spout,  which  discharges  it  into 
a  series  of  rectangular  vessels  made  of  large  sheets  of  lead, 


ACIDS. 


183 


of  12  or  14  lbs.  to  the  square  foot,  simply  folded  up  at  the 
angles  into  pans  8  or  10  inches  deep,  resting  upon  a  grate 
made  of  a  pretty  close  row  of  wrought-iron  bars  of  consid- 
erable strength,  under  which  the  flame  of  a  furnace  plays. 
Where  coals  are  very  cheap,  as  in  England,  each  pan  may 
have  a  separate  fire  ;  but  where  they  are  somewhat  dear, 
the  flame,  after  passing  under  the  lowest  pan  of  the  range, 
which  contains  the  strongest  acid  (at  about  1*600),  proceeds 
upwards  with  a  slight  slope  to  heat  the  pans  of  weaker  acid, 
which,  as  it  concentrates,  is  gradually  run  down  by  syphons 
to  replenish  the  lower  pans,  in  proportion  as  their  aqueous 
matter  is  dissipated.  The  3  or  4  pans  constituting  the  range 
are  thus  placed  in  a  straight  line,  but  each  at  a  different 
level,  terrace  like. 

When  the  acid  has  thereby  acquired  the  density  of  1650, 
or  1*700  at  most,  it  must  be  removed  from  the  leaden  evap- 
orators, because,  when  of  greater  strength,  it  would  begin  to 
corrode  them  ;  and  it  is  transferred  into  leaden  coolers,  or 
run  through  a  long  refrigeratory  worm-pipe  surrounded  by 
cold  water.  In  this  state  it  was  introduced  into  glass  or 
platinum  retorts,  to  undergo  a  final  concentration,  up  to  the 
specific  gravity  of  1*842,  or  even  occasionally  1*845,  in  con- 
sequence of  slight  saline  impurities.  When  glass  retorts  are 
used,  they  are  set  in  a  long  sand-bath  over  a  gallery  furnace, 
resting  on  fire-tiles,  under  which  a  powerful  flame  plays  ;  and 
as  the  flue  gradually  ascends  from  the  fire-place,  near  to 
which  it  is  most  distant  from  the  tiles,  to  the  remoter  end, 
the  heat  acts  with  tolerable  equality  on  the  first  and  last 
retort  in  the  range.  When  platinum  stills  are  employed, 
they  are  fitted  into  the  inside  of  cast-iron  pots,  which  pro- 
tect the  thin  bottom  and  sides  of  the  precious  metal.  The 
fire  being  applied  directly  to  the  iron,  causes  a  safe,  rapid,  and 
economical  concentration  of  the  acid.  The  iron  pots,  with 
their  platinum  interior,  filled  with  concentrated  boiling-hot  oil 
of  vitriol,  are  lifted  out  of  the  fire-seat  by  tackle,  and  let  down 
into  a  cistern  of  cold  water,  to  effect  the  speedy  refrigeration 
of  the  acid,  and  facilitate  its  transvasion  into  carboys  packed 
in  osier  baskets  lined  with  straw.    Sometimes,  however,  the 


184 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


acid  is  cooled  by  running  it  slowly  off  through  a  long  plati- 
num syphon,  surrounded  by  another  pipe  filled  with  cold 
water. 

One  of  the  characters  of  the  good  quality  of  sulphuric  acid, 
is  its  dissolving  indigo  without  altering  its  fine  blue  color. 
Sulphuric  acid,  when  well  prepared,  is  a  colorless  and  inodor- 
ous liquid,  of  an  oily  aspect,  possessing  a  specific  gravity,  in 
its  most  concentrated  state,  of  1*842,  when  redistilled,  but  as 
found  in  commerce,  of  1-845.  It  is  eminently  acid  and  cor 
rosive,  so  that  a  single  drop  will  communicate  the  power  of 
reddening  litmus  to  a  gallon  of  water,  and  will  produce  an 
ulcer  of  the  skin  when  allowed  to  remain  upon  it.  If  swal- 
lowed in  its  strongest  state,  in  even  a  small  quantity,  it  acts 
so  furiously  on  the  throat  and  stomach  as  to  cause  intolerable 
agony  and  speedy  death.  Watery  diluents,  mixed  with  chalk 
or  magnesia,  are  the  readiest  antidotes.  At  a  temperature  of 
about  600°  F.,  or  a  few  degrees  below  the  melting  point  of 
lead,  it  boils  and  distils  over  like  water.  This  is  the  best 
method  of  procuring  sulphuric  acid  free  from  the  saline  and 
metallic  matters  with  which  it  is  sometimes  contaminated.* 

The  affinity  of  sulphuric  acid  for  water  is  so  strong,  that 
when  exposed  in  an  open  saucer,  it  imbibes  one-third  of  its 
weight  from  the  atmosphere  in  24  hours,  and  fully  six  times 
its  weight  in  a  few  months.t    Hence  it  should  be  kept  ex- 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  article  Preparation  of  Chemic. 

t  Dr.  Dalton  ascertained  that  the  dilute  acid  could  be  concentrated  to  the  spe- 
cific gravity  1-814,  at  a  temperature  varying  from  65°  to  57° ;  whence  he  con- 
cludes that  acid  of  such  strength  is  capable  of  drying  a  vacuum  when  the  tempe- 
rature does  not  exceed  57°.  By  making  similar  experiments  in  air,  he  compared 
together  the  weights  lost  by  ten  grains  of  dilute  sulphuric  acid  of  the  specific  grav- 
ity 1135,  at  three  different  periods  of  the  day  for  six  days,  taking  note  of  the  dew- 
point  and  the  temperature ;  and  infers  that  when  the  affinity  of  space  for  vapor,  or 
the  evaporating  force,  is  equal  to  015  of  an  inch  of  mercury,  it  is  just  able  to  bal- 
ance the  affinity  for  water  of  sulphuric  acid  of  the  specific  gravity  1249. 

The  same  skilful  chemist  instituted  a  series  of  experiments  to  ascertain  wheth- 
er the  evaporation  of  water  from  dilute  sulphuric  acid  is  capable  of  being  carried 
on  to  the  same  extent  in  air  as  in  vacuo,  and  found  that  the  evaporating  force  of 
air  exerted  upon  such  acid  is  less  than  that  of  a  vacuum  at  the  same  temperature. 
He  observes  that  his  experiments  offer  conclusive  evidence  that  the  evaporation  of 
water  is  not  owing  to  the  existence  of  a  chemical  affinity,  between  the  vapo  »af  the 


ACIDS. 


185 


eluded  from  the  air.  If  four  parts,  by  weight,  of  the  strong- 
est acid  be  suddenly  mixed  with  one  part  of  water,  both 
being  at  50°  F.,  the  temperature  of  the  mixture  will  rise  to 
300°  ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  if  four  parts  of  ice  be  mixed 
with  one  of  sulphuric  acid,  they  immediately  liquefy  and 
sink  the  thermometer  to  4°  below  zero.  From  the  great  at- 
traction existing  between  this  acid  and  water,  a  saucer  of  it 
is  employed  to  effect  the  rapid  condensation  of  aqueous  vapor 
as  it  exhales  from  a  cup  of  water  placed  over  it ;  both  stand- 
ing under  the  exhausted  receiver  of  an  air-pump.  By  the 
cold  produced  by  this  unchecked  evaporation  in  vacuo,  the 
water  is  speedily  frozen. 

To  determine  the  purity  of  sulphuric  acid,  let  it  be  slowly 
heated  to  the  boiling  point  of  water,  and  if  any  volatile  acid 
matter  be  present,  it  will  evaporate,  with  its  characteristic 
smell.  The  presence  of  saline  impurity,  which  is  the  com- 
mon one,  is  discovered  by  evaporating  a  given  weight  of  it  in 
a  small  capsule  of  platinum  placed  on  red-hot  cinders.  If 
more  than  two  grains  remain  out  of  500,  the  acid  may  be 
reckoned  to  be  impure. 

M.  Gay  Lussac  has  recently  made  a  valuable  improvement 
in  the  process  of  manufacturing  sulphuric  acid,  and  for  which 
his  agent  in  England,  M.  Sautter,  has  secured  a  patent. 
The  improvement  consists  in  causing  the  waste  gas  of  the 
vitriol  chamber  to  ascend  through  the  chemical  cascade  of 
MM.  Clement  and  Desormes,  and  to  encounter  there  a  stream 
of  sulphuric  acid  of  specific  gravity  1-750.  The  nitrous  acid 
gas,  which  is  in  a  well-regulated  chamber  always  slightly 
redundant,  is  perfectly  absorbed  by  the  sulphuric  acid  ;  which, 
thus  impregnated,  is  made  to  trickle  down  through  another 


liquid  and  atmospheric  air ;  but  thinks  that  they  favor  the  notion  that  the  obstruc- 
tion to  this  process  in  the  open  atmosphere  is  rather  owing  to  the  pressure  than 
to  the  vis  inerticB  of  the  particles  of  air.  He  is  also  of  opinion  that  improvements 
will  hereafter  arise  from  this  inquiry  with  regard  to  the  economical  management 
of  the  process  of  manufacturing  sulphuric  acid,  which  process  would  be  greatly 
expedited  by  the  regulated  admission  of  steam  into  the  condensing  chambers  kept 
at  a  constant  high  temperature.  This,  we  have  seen,  has  to  a  great  extent  been 
verified  by  MM.  Clement  and  Desormes. 

24 


186 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


cascade,  up  through  which  passes  a  current  of  sulphurous 
acid,  from  the  combustion  of  sulphur  in  a  little  adjoining 
chamber.  The  condensed  nitrous  acid  gas  is  thereby  imme- 
diately transformed  into  nitrous  gas  (deutoxide  of  azote) 
which  is  transmitted  from  this  second  cascade  into  the  large 
vitriol  chamber,  and  there  exercises  its  well-known  reaction 
upon  its  aeriform  contents.  The  economy  thus  effected  in 
the  sulphuric  acid  manufacture  is  such  that  for  100  parts  of 
sulphur  3  of  nitrate  of  soda  will  suffice,  instead  of  9  or  10  as 
usually  consumed. 

Upon  the  formation  of  sulphated  nitrous  gas  (N  O'2,  3  S 
O3,  2  H  O),  and  its  combination  with  oil  of  vitriol,  the  manu- 
facture of  hydrated  sulphuric  acid  is  founded.  Either  sul- 
phur is  burned  in  mixture  with  about  one-ninth  of  saltpetre ; 
whence  along  with  sulphurous  acid  gas,  nitrous  oxide  gas  is 
disengaged,  while  sulphate  of  potash  remains ;  thus  K  O,  N 
O5  -f  S  =S  O3  +  N  O2,  K  O.  2.  Or,  nitric  acid  in  the  fluid 
or  vaporous  form  may  be  present  in  the  lead-chamber,  into 
which  the  sulphurous  acid  gas  passes,  in  consequence  of 
placing  in  the  flames  of  the  sulphur  a  pan,  charged  with  a 
mixture  of  sulphuric  acid  and  nitre  or  nitrate  of  soda.  This 
nitric  acid  being  decomposed  by  a  portion  of  the  sulphurous 
acid,  there  will  result  sulphuric  acid  and  nitrous  gas.  By  the 
mutual  reaction  of  the  sulphurous  and  nitric  acids,  sulphuric 
acid  and  nitrous  gas  will  be  produced :  N05  +  3SO=N02 
4-  3  S  O3.  3.  Or,  by  heating  sugar  or  starch  with  nitric  acid, 
the  mixture  of  nitrous  gas  and  nitrous  acid  vapor  which  re- 
sults, may  be  thrown  into  the  chamber  among  the  sulphurous 
acid.  In  any  one  of  these  three  cases,  sulphurous  acid  gas, 
nitrous  acid  vapors  (proceeding  from  the  mixture  of  nitrous 
oxide  and  atmospherical  oxygen)  and  steam  are  mingled 
together ;  whence  arises  the  crystaline  compound  of  sulpha- 
ted nitrous  oxide  with  sulphuric  acid,  which  compound  sub- 
sides in  white  clouds  to  the  bottom  of  the  chamber,  and  dis- 
solves in  the  dilute  oil  of  vitriol  placed  there,  into  sulphuric 
acid,  with  disengagement  of  nitrous  gas.  This  gas  now 
forms,  with  the  remaining  atmospherical  oxygen,  nitrous  acid 
vapors  once  more,  which  condense  a  fresh  portion  of  sulphur- 


ACIDS. 


187 


ous  acid  gas  into  the  crystaline  compound ;  and  thus  in  per- 
petual alternation. 

Sulphurous  acid  gas  does  not  act  upon  nitrous  gas,  not  even 
upon  the  nitrous  acid  vapor  produced  by  the  admission  of 
oxygen,  if  water  be  absent;  but  the  moment  that  a  little 
steam  is  admitted,  the  crystaline  compound  is  condensed. 
The  presence  of  much  sulphuric  acid  favors  the  formation  of 
the  sulphated  nitrous  gas.  These  crystals  are  decomposed  by 
tepid  water  with  disengagement  of  nitrous  gas,  which  seizes 
the  oxygen  present  and  becomes  nitrous  acid. 

According  to  the  analysis  of  Dr.  Thomson,  the  crystaline 
compound  deposited  occasionally  in  the  leaden  chambers  con- 
sists of — 

Sulphurous  acid,  0*6387,  or  3  atoms. 

Sulphuric  acid    0-5290  2 

Nitric  acid    .      0*3450      1  atom. 

Water     .    .      0*0733  1 

Sulphate  of  lead  0*0140. 
He  admits  that  the  proportion  of  water  is  a  little  uncertain ; 
and  that  the  presence  of  sulphurous  acid  was  not  proved  by  di- 
rect analysis.  When  heated  with  water,  the  crystaline  mat- 
ter disengages  nitrous  gas  in  abundance ;  lets  fall  some  sul- 
phate of  lead ;  and  the  liquid  is  found  to  be  sulphuric  acid. 
When  heated  without  water,  it  is  decomposed  with  emission 
of  nitrous  gas  and  fuming  nitric  acid  ;  leaving  a  liquid  which, 
mixed  with  water,  produces  a  brisk  effervescence,  consisting 
chiefly  of  nitrous  gas. 

In  looking  at  the  present  state  of  chemistry,  it  must  be  al- 
lowed that  it  exhibits  a  most  promising  aspect ;  the  study  of 
its  abstract  principles  is  calculated  to  keep  the  curiosity  con- 
stantly on  the  alert,  and  awaken  an  intense  and  peculiar  in- 
terest ;  and  it  is  quite  impossible  to  glance  at  its  recent  pro- 
gress, and  at  the  extraordinary  discoveries  which  are  daily 
rewarding  the  labours  of  its  skilful  cultivators,  without  an- 
ticipating most  important  consequences.  Should  its  progress 
during  the  ensuing  century  only  equal  that  of  the  past,  it 
must  lead  to  results  deeply  affecting  the  interests  and  welfare 
of  mankind. 


188 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


The  following  table,  by  Dr.  Ure,  shows  the  quantity  of 
concentrated  and  dry  sulphuric  acid  in  100  parts  of  dilute,  at 
different  densities: — 


Liquid. 

Spec,  gravity. 

Dry. 

Liquid. 

Spec,  gravity. 

Dry. 

Liquid. 

Spec,  gravity. 

Dry. 

100 

18460 

81-54 

66 

1  -5503 

53-82 

32 

1-2334 

2609 

99 

18438 

80-72 

65 

1-5390 

5300 

31 

1-2260 

25-28 

98 

1'8415 

79-90 

64 

1*5280 

52-18 

30 

1-2184 

24-46 

97 

1*8391 

79-09 

63 

1-5170 

51-37 

29 

1-2108 

23  65 

96 

T8366 

78-28 

62 

1-5066 

50-55 

28 

1-2032 

22-83 

95 

18340 

77-46 

61 

1-4960 

49-74 

27 

11956 

22  01 

94 

1*8288 

76-65 

60 

1-4860 

48-92 

26 

1-1876 

21-20 

93 

18235 

75-83 

59 

1-4760 

48  11 

25 

11792 

20-38 

92 

1*8181 

7502 

58 

1-4660 

47-29 

24 

11706 

19-57 

91 

1*8026 

74-20 

57 

1-4560 

46-48 

23 

11626 

18-75 

90 

18070 

73-39 

56 

1-4460 

45-66 

22 

11549 

1794 

89 

1*7986 

72-57 

55 

1-4360 

44-85 

21 

1-1480 

1712 

88 

1*7901 

7175 

54 

1  -4265 

4403 

20 

1-1410 

16-31 

87 

1*7815 

70-94 

53 

1-4170 

43-22 

19 

1-1330 

15-49 

86 

1*7728 

70- 12 

52 

1-4073 

4240 

18 

1-1246 

14-68 

85 

1  7640 

69  31 

51 

1-3977 

41*58 

17 

11165 

13-86 

84 

1*7540 

68  49 

50 

1  OOO/I 

40*77 

16 

1-1090 

13  05 

83 

1-7425 

d7-do 

49 

l-3/oo 

39*95 

15 

1*1019 

12-23 

82 

1*7315 

6686 

48 

1-3697 

3914 

14 

1-0953 

11-41 

81 

1  7200 

66*05 

47 

1-3612 

3832 

13 

1-0887 

10-60 

80 

1-7080 

65-23 

46 

1-3530 

3751 

12 

10809 

9-78 

79 

1-6972 

64*42 

45 

1-3440 

36-69 

11 

10743 

8-97 

78 

1-6860 

63-60 

44 

1-3345 

35-88 

10 

10682 

815 

77 

1-6744 

62-78 

43 

1-3255 

35  06 

9 

10614 

7-34 

76 

1-6624 

61-97 

42 

1-3165 

34-25 

8 

10544 

6-52 

75 

1-6500 

6115 

41 

1-3080 

33-43 

7 

10477 

5-71 

74 

1-6415 

60-34 

40 

1-2999 

32-61 

6 

1  0405 

4-89 

73 

1-6321 

59-52 

39 

1-2913 

31-80 

5 

10336 

4-08 

72 

1-6204 

58-71 

38 

1-2826 

30-98 

4 

10268 

3-26 

71 

1-6090 

57-89 

37 

1-2740 

3017 

3 

10206 

2  446 

70 

1-5975 

57-08 

36 

1-2654 

29-35 

2 

10140 

1-63 

69 

1-5868 

56  26 

35 

1-2572 

28-54 

1 

10074 

0-8154 

68 

1-5760 

5545 

34 

1-2490 

27-72 

67 

1-5648 

54-63 

33 

1-2409 

26-91 

The  best  test  for  sulphuric  acid,  and  the  soluble  salts  into 
which  it  enters,  is  the  nitrate  of  baryta,  of  which  182  parts 
are  equivalent  to  49  of  the  strongest  liquid  acid,  or  to  40  of 
the  dry,  as  it  exists  in  crystalized  sulphate  of  potassa.  One 
twenty-thousandth  part  of  a  grain  of  the  acid  may  be  de- 
tected by  the  grayish-white  cloud  which  baryta  forms  with  it. 

T. 

TANNIC  ACID  is  prepared  as  follows : — Into  a  long  nar- 
row glass  adopter  tube,  shut  at  its  lower  orifice  with  a  cotton 


ACIDS. 


189 


wick,  a  quantity  of  pounded  galls  are  put,  and  slightly  pressed 
down.  The  tapering  end  of  the  tube  being  inserted  into  a 
matrass  or  bottle,  the  vacant  upper  half  of  the  tube  is  filled 
with  sulphuric  ether,  and  then  closed  with  a  ground-glass 
stopper.  Next  day  there  will  be  found  in  the  bottle  a  liquid 
in  two  distinct  strata ;  of  which  the  more  limpid  occupies  the 
upper  part,  and  the  other,  of  a  syrupy  consistence  and  amber 
color,  the  lower.  More  ether  must  be  filtered  through  the 
galls,  till  the  thicker  liquid  ceases  to  augment.  Both  are  now 
poured  into  a  funnel,  closed  with  the  finger,  and  after  the 
dense  liquor  is  settled  at  the  bottom,  it  is  steadily  run  off  into 
a  capsule.  This,  after  being  washed  repeatedly  with  ether,  is 
to  be  transferred  into  a  stove  chamber,  or  placed  under  the  re- 
ceiver of  an  air  pump,  to  be  evaporated.  The  residuary  mat- 
ter swells  up  in  a  spongy  crystaline  form  of  considerable  bril- 
liancy, sometimes  colorless,  but  more  frequently  of  a  faintly 
yellowish  hue.  This  is  pure  tannin,  which  exists  in  galls  to 
the  amount  of  from  40  to  45  per  cent.  It  is  indispensable 
that  the  ether  employed  in  the  preceding  process  be  previously 
agitated  with  water,  or  that  it  contain  some  water,  because 
by  using  anhydrous  ether,  not  a  particle  of  tannin  will  be  ob- 
tained. 

Tannic  acid  is  a  white  or  yellowish  solid,  inodorous,  ex- 
tremely astringent,  very  soluble  in  water  and  alcohol,  much 
less  so  in  sulphuric  ether,  and  uncrystalizable.  Its  watery 
solution,  out  of  contact  of  air,  undergoes  no  change ;  but  if, 
in  a  very  dilute  state,  it  be  left  exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  it 
loses  gradually  its  transparency,  and  lets  fall  a  slightly  gray- 
ish crystaline  matter,  consisting  almost  entirely  of  gallic  acid. 
For  procuring  this  acid  in  a  perfectly  pure  state,  it  is  merely 
necessary  to  treat  the  solution  thus  changed  with  animal 
charcoal,  and  to  filter  it,  in  a  boiling  state,  through  paper  pre- 
viously washed  with  dilute  muriatic  acid.  The  gallic  acid 
will  fall  down  in  crystals  as  the  liquid  cools. 

If  the  preceding  experiment  be  made  in  a  graduated  glass 
tube  containing  oxygen  over  mercury,  this  gas  will  be  ab- 
sorbed, and  a  corresponding  volume  of  carbonic  acid  gas  will 
be  disengaged.    In  this  case  the  liquor  will  appear  in  the 


190 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


course  of  a  few  weeks  as  if  traversed  with  numerous  crys- 
taline  colorless  needles  of  gallic  acid. 

Tannin  or  tannic  acid  consists  of  carbon  51*56 ;  hydrogen 
4-20;  oxygen  44-24. 

From  the  above  facts  it  is  obvious  that  gallic  acid  does  not 
exist  ready  formed  in  gall-nuts,  but  that  it  is  produced  by  the 
reaction  of  atmospheric  oxygen  upon  the  tannin  of  these  con- 
cretions.— (See  Gallic  Acid,  chapter  II.,  Part  III. ;  see  also 
Mordants,  chapter  I.  of  the  same  Part.) 

TARTARIC  ACID.— This  acid  is  much  employed  in 
calico-printing,  and  for  making  sodaic  powders.  It  is  pre- 
pared by  adding  gradually  to  a  boiling  hot  solution  of  100 
parts  of  tartar,  in  a  large  copper  boiler,  26  of  chalk,  made 
into  a  smooth  pap  with  water.  A  brisk  effervescence  ensues, 
by  the  disengagement  of  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  chalk,  while 
its  base  combines  with  the  acid  excess  in  the  tartar,  and 
forms  an  insoluble  precipitate  of  tartrate  of  lime.  The 
supernatant  liquor,  which  is  a  solution  of  neutral  tartrate 
of  potassa,  must  be  drawn  off  by  a  syphon,  and  decomposed 
by  a  solution  of  chloride  of  calcium  (muriate  of  lime.)  28^ 
parts  of  the  dry  chloride  are  sufficient  for  100  of  tartar.  The 
tartrate  of  lime,  from  both  processes,  is  to  be  washed  with 
water,  drained,  and  then  subjected,  in  a  leaden  cistern,  to 
the  action  of  49  parts  of  sulphuric  acid,  previously  diluted 
with  8  times  its  weight  of  water;  100  of  dry  tartrate  take 
75  of  oil  of  vitriol.  This  mixture,  after  digestion  for  a  few 
days,  is  converted  into  sulphate  of  lime  and  tartaric  acid. 
The  latter  is  to  be  separated  from  the  former  by  decantation, 
nitration  through  canvass,  and  edulcoration  of  the  sulphate 
of  lime  upon  the  filter. 

In  decomposing  the  tartrate  of  lime,  a  very  slight  excess 
of  sulphuric  acid  must  be  employed ;  because  pure  tartaric 
acid  would  dissolve  any  tartrate  of  lime  that  may  escape 
decomposition.  Bone  black,  previously  freed  from  its  car- 
bonate and  phosphate  of  lime,  by  muriatic  acid,  is  sometimes 
employed  to  bleach  or  whiten  the  colored  solutions  of  the 
first  crystals. 

The  clear  acid  is  to  be  concentrated  in  leaden  pans,  by 


ACIDS. 


191 


a  moderate  heat,  till  it  acquires  the  density  of  40°  B.  (spec, 
grav.  1*38),  it  is  then  run  off,  clear  from  any  sediment, 
into  leaden  or  stone-ware  vessels,  which  are  set  in  a  dry 
stove-room  for  it  to  crystalize.  The  crystals,  being  re-dis- 
solved and  re-crystalized,  become  colorless  six-sided  prisms. 

Tartaric  acid,  according  to  Dr.  Ure's  analysis,  contains 
nearly  9  per  cent,  of  combined  water,  and  is  soluble  in  two 
parts  of  water  at  60°,  and  in  its  own  weight  of  boiling  water. 
This  acid  is  much  more  easily  decomposed  by  heat  than 
oxalic  acid ;  hence,  it  is  apt  to  acquire  a  brown  tinge,  unless 
great  care  be  taken  to  crystalize  it  in  rather  a  low  tem- 
perature. 

When  the  tartrates  are  subjected  to  destructive  distillation, 
they  yield  a  quantity  of  empyreumatic  oil,  showing  clearly 
that  hydrogen  enters  as  a  constituent  into  the  acid.  The 
quantity  of  carbureted  hydrogen  and  carbonic  acid  gases 
evolved,  leaves  no  doubt  that  carbon  and  oxygen  constitute 
the  other  two.  Berzelius  endeavored  to  determine  the  pro- 
portion of  these  constituents  by  burning  a  mixture  of  tar- 
trate of  lead  and  chlorate  of  potash  in  a  glass  tube,  and 
collecting  the  products,  which  were  as  follows : — 

Hydrogen  .  3807 
Carbon  .  .  35-980 
Oxygen  .    .  60-213 

100 

According  to  Dr.  Thomson's  analysis,  9*375  grains  of  crys- 
talized  tartaric  acid  contain  3  grains  of  carbon.  The  5 
grains  wanting  to  make  up  the  weight  must  be  oxygen. 
Thus  it  appears,  that  the  constituents  of  9*375  grains  of 
crystalized  tartaric  acid  are  as  follows  : — 

1  atom  water         =  1*125 

2  atoms  hydrogen   =  0-25 

4  atoms  carbon       =  3 

5  atoms  oxygen      =  5 

9*375 

In  a  series  of  experiments  made  by  Dr.  Prout,  to  determine 


192 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  composition  of  tartaric  acid  in  crystals,  the  following  re- 
sults were  obtained : — 

3  atoms  hydrogen   .  0*375 

4  atoms  carbon  .  3 
6  atoms  oxygen      .  6 

9-375 

Dr.  Thomson's  analysis,  however,  may  be  relied  upon  as 
the  most  correct ;  he  repeated  his  experiments  several  times, 
with  a  view  of  obtaining  correct  conclusions  on  the  subject, 
and  gives  as  the  true  atomic  weight  of  tartaric  acid  8.25. 
Hence,  the  crystals  must  in  reality  be  composed  of 

1  atom  tartaric  acid  8*25 
1  atom  water  1-125 

9-375 

M.  Braconnot,  in  a  recent  No.  of  the  Ann.  de  Chim.  et  de 
Phys.:  gives  a  most  interesting  paper  on  the  Isomeric  modi- 
fication of  Tartaric  Acid.  "  It  is  well  known,"  he  says. 
"  that  tartaric  and  racemic  (paratartaric)  acids  were  the  first 
well-defined  examples  of  isomerism.  The  judicious  reflec- 
tions of  M.  Dumas  on  this  extraordinary  phenomenon  have 
recalled  a  fact  belonging  to  it,  and  which  I  had  occasion  to 
observe,  respecting  tartaric  acid. 

"  Forty  parts  of  this  acid  having  been  exposed  for  an  in- 
stant to  a  considerable  heat,  they  fused,  swelled  up,  and  left 
after  cooling  a  dry  yellowish  matter,  which  was  transparent 
like  gum,  and  weighed  36-5  parts.  This  substance  when 
softened  by  heat  acquired  great  ductility,  which  allowed  it  to 
be  drawn  into  threads  as  fine  as  hairs. 

"  This  change  of  form,  which  recalls  the  dimorphism  of 
sulphur,  shows  either  a  new  molecular  arrangement,  or  an- 
other isomerical  modification.  In  fact,  the  tartaric  acid  thus 
submitted  to  the  action  of  heat,  no  longer  possesses  its  origi- 
nal properties ;  it  is  uncrystalizable,  and  is  merely  a  thick 
viscid  mucilage,  which  attracts  moisture  from  the  air. 

"  If  this  substance  be  dissolved  in  hot  water,  and  carbonate 


ACIDS.  193 

of  lime  be  gradually  added  to  saturate  it,  it  does  not  form,  as 
with  common  tartaric  acid,  a  sandy  deposit  of  crystalized  tar- 
trate of  lime,  but  the  solution  becomes  gradually  turbid  as  it 
cools,  and  deposits  a  mucilaginous  transparent  insipid  mass, 
which  forms  threads  between  the  fingers  like  turpentine. 
This  calcareous  salt  when  dried  is  unalterable  in  the  air,  and 
resembles  gum  arabic.  When  heated  in  water  or  weak 
acetic  acid,  it  softens,  resuming  its  viscid  and  adhesive  prop- 
erties, without  being  sensibly  dissolved;  an  excess  of  acid, 
however,  redissolves  it,  especially  when  hot,  and  by  evapo- 
rating the  solution  to  dryness,  there  remains  a  dry,  brittle, 
acidulous  substance,  which  is  transparent  like  a  varnish,  is 
unalterable  by  the  air,  and  which,  when  immersed  for  some 
time  in  cold  water,  seems  to  undergo  a  molecular  motion, 
which  reproduces  tartaric  acid  in  its  original  state,  for  then 
there  separates  a  sandy  deposit  of  common  tartrate  of  lime." 

Such  are  the  properties  of  the  principal  animal,  vegetable, 
and  mineral  substances  used  in  dyeing  and  calico-printing,  a 
knowledge  of  which  is  of  the  highest  importance  to  the  prac- 
tical man. — (See  Appendix,  article  Tartar.) 

25 


PART  SECOND. 
OF  BLEACHING. 


CHAPTER  I. 

COTTON. 

Necessity  of  Goods  being  a  pure  white — Processes  of  Bleaching — Old,  Improved, 
and  New  Processes — Theory  of  Bleaching — Favorable  influence  of  Light — 
Objections  to  Chlorine  as  a  Bleaching  Agent — Application  of  Chloride  of  Lime 
— Method  of  making  Bleaching  Powder — Destruction  of  its  Bleaching  proper- 
ties, and  the  cause — Various  methods  of  testing  the  qualities  of  Bleaching  Pow- 
der— Objections  to  most  of  them — Remarks  on  Bleached  Goods  intended  to  be 
dyed  delicate  shades — Chemical  nature  of  Bleaching — Erroneous  opinions  of 
authors  upon  this  subject. 

We  have  already  had  occasion  to  notice  (in  chap.  II.,  Part 
I.),  the  necessity  of  goods  being  a  pure  white  previous  to 
being  dyed  any  light  fancy*  shade  ;  otherwise  the  natural 
yellow  color  of  the  goods,  whether  cotton,  silk,  or  woolen, 
would  interfere  with  the  particular  shade  wanted.  If,  for 
example,  the  shade  required  be  a  light  pink  upon  cotton,  and 
a  little  safflower  be  put  upon  it  unbleached,  the  resulting 
color  would  not  be  a  pink,  but  a  shade  intermediate  between 
a  salmon  and  a  brick  color,  from  the  yellow  ray  reflected  from 
the  cotton  mixing  with  the  red  reflected  from  the  dye.  We 
must,  therefore,  before  dyeing  a  light  pink,  get  rid  of  these 
yellow  rays,  and  this  is  obtained  by  the  process  of  bleaching. 


*  This  is  a  technical  term  for  fugitive  colors,  or  colors  not  fast. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


195 


Hence,  the  dyer  must,  of  necessity,  be  also  a  bleacher,  and 
one,  too,  who  has  more  to  attend  to  than  merely  producing  a 
good  Avhite ;  for  as  the  substances  used  for  bleaching  are  in 
general  hurtful  to  the  fancy  colors,  he  must  be  very  careful 
that  the  one  process  shall  not  interfere  with  the  other. 

These  remarks,  we  think,  will  satisfy  the  reader  of  the 
importance  of  giving  an  outline  of  the  process  of  bleaching, 
previous  to  describing  the  nature  of  the  goods  and  processes 
for  dyeing  those  colors  which  require  to  be  dyed  upon 
bleached  goods.  Black,  vat  blue,  and  green,  do  not  require 
bleaching,  except  for  some  particular  light  shades  of  the  two 
latter. 

Where  and  when  the  practice  of  bleaching  cloth  first  began 
to  be  practised  we  have  no  account ;  but  we  may  reason- 
ably suppose  that,  as  soon  as  man  became  so  far  civilized 
as  to  manufacture  clothing,  the  constant  exposure  of  that 
clothing  to  the  atmosphere,  and  occasional  washing,  would 
naturally  suggest  the  idea  of  bleaching.  However,  we  know 
that  bleaching  is  of  very  ancient  origin,  mention  being  made 
of  it  in  the  oldest  books  extant.  What  was  the  nature  of  the 
process  practised  in  these  early  times,  is  not  clear  ;  but  from 
the  earliest  description  to  the  close  of  last  century  no  other 
process  was  known  but  alternate  boiling,  washing,  and  expo- 
sure to  the  atmosphere — a  process  which  required  a  number 
of  months  to  complete  ;  but,  since  the  application  of  chlorine 
to  this  purpose — an  application  which,  as  Graham  observes, 
"  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  which  chemistry  has  presented 
to  the  arts" — the  process  is  completed  in  a  few  days  ;  nay,  for 
the  most  of  dyeing  operations,  in  a  few  hours. 

As  many  are  now  unacquainted  with  the  routine  of  the 
process  of  bleaching  previous  to  the  introduction  of  chlorine, 
it  may  be  worth  while  to  give  a  short  description  of  it,  to 
illustrate  the  advantages  obtained  from  the  application  of 
science  to  the  arts.  The  first  operation  was  that  of  steeping, 
which  was  merely  immersing  the  yarn  in  hot  water  or  cold 
alkaline  leys.  When  water  was  used  the  steeping  lasted  for 
three  or  four  days,  but  with  alkaline  leys  forty-eight  hours 
were  sufficient*  the  goods  were  then  washed,  and  boiled  in 


196 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


an  alkaline  ley  for  four  or  five  hours,  washed  and  exposed  on 
the  grass  for  two  or  three  weeks,  again  boiled  or  bucked  * 
washed,  and  crofted.}  These  alternate  operations  of  buck- 
ing, washing,  and  crofting,  were  generally  repeated  four  or 
five  times,  each  time  reducing  the  strength  of  the  alkaline 
leys  in  which  the  bucking  was  performed. 

The  next  process  was  that  of  souring,  which,  till  nearly 
the  middle  of  last  century,  consisted  in  steeping  the  goods  for 
several  weeks  in  soured  buttermilk.  This  process  was  much 
shortened  by  Dr.  Home,  who  suggested  the  use  of  sulphuric 
acid  (vitriol)  instead  of  milk  ;  and  twelve  hours,  with  a  sour 
of  this  acid,  were  sufficient. %  After  the  first  souring,  the  ope- 
rations of  boiling,  washing,  souring,  and  crofting,  were  re- 
peated in  regular  rotation,  until  the  yarn  came  to  a  good 
color,  and  was  esteemed  perfectly  clear.  A  quantity  of  soap 
was  generally  used  in  the  last  operations  of  boiling.  The 
number  of  times  these  operations  were  repeated  varied  ac- 
cording to  the  quality  of  the  goods :  linen  was  seldom  fin 
ished  in  less  than  six  months,  cotton  goods  varied  from  six 
weeks  to  three  months. 

Various  opinions  were  advanced  to  explain  the  nature  of 
the  chemical  changes  induced  during  these  operations ;  but 
such  opinions  could  only  be  hypothetical  so  long  as  the  com- 
position of  the  atmosphere  and  of  water  were  not  known — 
two  substances  which  acted  a  very  prominent  part  in  these 
operations.  And  neither  can  we  offer  any  explanation  till 
once  we  are  acquainted  not  only  with  the  composition  of  the 
atmosphere  and  water,  but  also  of  the  coloring  matter  upon 
the  goods.  Pure  water  is  composed  of  oxygen  and  hydrogen, 
in  the  proportions  by  weight  of  eight  of  the  former  to  one  of 
the  latter.  The  atmosphere  is  composed  in  the  100  parts  by 
weight  of  79  nitrogen,  20  oxygen ;  the  remaining  one  being 
carbonic  acid  gas  and  watery  vapor.  The  composition  of  the 
coloring  matter  of  the  goods  has  not  as  yet  been  very  accu- 
rately ascertained  ;  but,  from  several  experiments  made  upon 


*  A  technical  terra  for  boiling. 

+  A  technical  term  for  exposing  on  the  grass. 


t  Home  on  Bleaching. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


197 


it,  its  properties  are  neutral,  and  will,  therefore,  be  composed 
of  equal  portions  of  oxygen  and  hydrogen  united  to  carbon ; 
but,  besides  this  coloring  matter,  there  is  also  a  resinous  sub- 
stance upon  cotton  which  resists  the  action  of  water  and 
makes  it  very  difficult  to  moisten  (wet  out).  This  resinous 
substance  is  composed  of  hydrogen  and  carbon,  and  is  solu- 
ble in  alkalies  and  water,  and  is,  therefore,  mostly  all  taken  out 
by  steeping  and  boiling.  These  resinous  and  coloring  mat- 
ters do  not  form  a  part  of  the  cotton,  but  mechanically  ad- 
here to  it,  so  that  substances  may  act  upon  and  decompose 
them  without  in  the  least  destroying  the  cotton ;  indeed,  from 
a  number  of  experiments,  cotton  is  found  as  strong  when 
deprived  of  these  substances  as  before. 

In  order  to  ascertain  the  chemical  changes  which  take 
place  when  goods  are  bleached  in  the  air,  Mons.  Berthollet — 
finding  that  those  seasons  when  most  dew  was  deposited, 
were  the  most  effective  upon  the  color — examined  the  dew 
which  falls  from  the  atmosphere,  and  also  that  which  tran- 
spires from  the  grass,  and  found  both  to  contain  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  oxygen  to  destroy  the  color  of  turnsole  paper.* 
What  errors  led  to  these  results  we  do  not  know,  for  although 
dew  did  contain  oxygen,  it  would  not  give  its  acid  properties 
to  redden  turnsole  paper.  Or  whether  M.  Berthollet  con- 
sidered the  bleaching  property  of  dew  owing  to  its  having 
free  oxygen,  or  to  this  acid  property,  we  do  not  know,  not 
having  seen  the  original  details.  The  theory  of  croft-bleach- 
ing has  been  explained  variously  as  follows : — 

1.  The  oxygen  of  the  atmosphere  combines  with  the  color- 
ing matter  of  the  cotton,  forming  a  new  substance  capable  of 
solution  in  water  or  alkalies,  and  comes  off  by  washing  or 
boiling ;  or  it  combines  with  some  of  the  elements  of  the 
coloring  matter,  such  as  the  carbon  forming  carbonic  acid 
gas,  which  escapes  into  the  air,  or  with  the  hydrogen  and 
forms  water ;  those  elements  which  are  left  form  either  color- 
less substances,  or  substances  soluble,  in  the  next  operation. 


*  Park's  Chemical  Essays. 


198 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


2.  The  oxygen  combines  directly  with  the  coloring  matter, 
forming  a  permanent  and  colorless  oxide. 

3.  That  water  acts  otherwise  than  being  merely  a  solvent : 
that  it,  or  one  of  its  elements,  combines  with  the  coloring  sub- 
stance, producing  the  effects  noticed  in  the  first  proposition. 
Hence,  dew  being  pure  and  free  from  any  admixture  which 
might  retard  this  union,  is  better  fitted  for  bleaching ;  con- 
sequently, the  seasons  when  most  dew  is  deposited,  the 
bleaching  process  will  be  accelerated.  Which  of  these  theo- 
ries is  the  true  one  we  cannot  say ;  but,  from  observation, 
light  facilitates  the  process  of  bleaching,  and  this  circum- 
stance, we  think,  favors  the  supposition  of  the  coloring  matter 
being  decomposed.  Other  interesting  theories  might  be  ad- 
vanced from  phenomena  observed  during  the  process  of  croft 
bleaching ;  and  also  the  part  the  alkaline  boils,  and  the  sours 
take  in  the  operation,  but  our  space  will  not  permit  us  to 
enter  into  details. 

The  modern  process  of  bleaching,  and  that  which  is  now 
almost  universally  practised,  is  by  means  of  chlorine.*  This 
substance  was  discovered  in  the  year  1774,  by  Scheele,  who 
also  described  its  peculiar  property  of  destroying  vegetable 
coloring  matters ;  but  M.  Berthollet  was  the  first  who  called 
the  attention  of  the  public  to  its  value  as  a  bleaching  agent, 
in  1785.  About  the  time  this  chemist  was  prosecuting  his 
inquiries  into  the  nature  of  this  substance,  he  was  visited  by 
the  celebrated  James  Watt,  to  whom  Berthollet  related  the 


*  Extemporaneous  Solution  of  Chlorine. — M.  Tourtois  gives  the  following  quan- 
tities of  ingredients  for  obtaining  a  solution  of  chlorine,  which  are  to  be  added  to 
an  imperial  quart  of  water,  and  well  shaken  together  in  a  stoppered  bottle ;  and  he 
remarks,  that  unless  the  deutoxide  of  lead  be  finely  powdered,  some  of  it  will  re- 
main undecomposed : — 

Sulphuric  acid     .    .    .    .    910  grains 
Common  salt       ....  280 
Deutoxide  of  lead     .    .    .    840 — Journ.  de  Pharm. 
As,  however,  280  of  common  salt  contain  112  of  sodium,  requiring  nearly  38  of 
oxygen  for  conversion  into  soda,  and  as  116  of  deutoxide  of  lead  give  out  only  4 
of  oxygen  by  reduction  to  protoxide,  it  will  appear  by  calculation  that  1102  grains 
of  red  lead  should  be  used  with  280  of  salt,  instead  of  only  840.    The  sulphuric 
acid  must  be  equivalent  to  150  of  soda,  and  1064  of  protoxide  of  lead,  or  about  700 
grains,  instead  of  910. 


BLEACHING   OP  COTTON. 


199 


results  of  his  experiments  upon  bleaching,  and  by  this  cir- 
cumstance the  inventor  of  the  modern  steam  engine  became 
also  the  introducer  of  the  new  process  of  bleaching  into  Great 
Britain.* 

The  introduction  of  chlorine  as  a  bleaching  agent,  like  all 
other  discoveries  which  tend  to  overturn  old  practices,  met 
with  a  host  of  oppositions.  The  most  prominent  objections 
offered  were,  that  it  destroyed  the  cloth — did  not  give  a  per- 
manent white — and  it  killed  the  men  who  wrought  with  it. 
These  oppositions  were  not  altogether  groundless,  but  the 
force  with  which  they  were  urged  hastened  the  improvements 
and  effected  remedies.  The  first  method  of  using  chlorine 
was  by  saturating  cold  water  with  the  gas, — the  water  taking 
up  about  twice  its  volume  of  it.  The  goods  were  put  in  this 
water,  after  which  it  was  heated  to  drive  off  the  chlorine,  or 
set  it  free,  that  it  might  act  upon  the  coloring  matter ;  but 
the  goods  being  impaired  by  this  process,  even  when  the  great- 
est care  was  taken,  suggested  the  diluting  of  the  chlorine 
water ;  which  diluted  liquor  was  found  to  bleach  equally  well 
and  the  goods  were  preserved.  The  defect  of  the  goods  be- 
coming yellow  after  a  few  days  suggested  alternate  boiling 
with  alkaline  leys ;  and  the  difficulty  arising  from  the  work- 
men being  unable  to  endure  the  effects  of  the  escaping  gas, 
led  to  the  discovery  that  alkalies  not  only  absorb  a  greater 
quantity  of  chlorine  than  water,  but  that  they  hold  it  with 
greater  affinity,  not  allowing  the  gas  to  escape  and  affect  the 
atmosphere,  at  the  same  time  parting  with  it  more  regularly 
and  effectively  to  the  goods.  The  alkalies  used  were  soda  and 
potash,  and  each  bleaching  work  had  its  regular  apparatus  of 
retorts  and  carboys,  or  wooden  chests,  for  the  purpose  of 
making  their  own  chloride  of  potash  or  soda.  This  practice 
is  still  continued  in  many  print  works,  both  in  Scotland  and 
England,  for  particular  fabrics  or  delicate  operations,  as  it  is 
considered  much  safer,  and  better  adapted  for  certain  purposes, 
than  the  common  bleaching  powder.    In  the  year  1798,  Mr. 


*  S  )me  give  this  honor  to  Professor  Copland  of  Aberdeen ;  but,  from  the  evi- 
dence we  have  seen  it  belongs  to  Watt. 


200 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Tennant,  of  Glasgow,  patented  a  process  for  using  a  solution 
of  lime  for  absorbing  the  chlorine  instead  of  potash  and  soda ; 
shortly  after,  the  hydrate  of  lime  (slaked  lime,)  was  substitu- 
ted for  lime  water,  and  this  is  the  preparation  now  used  for 
bleaching,  under  the  names  of  bleaching-powder  and  chlo- 
ride of  lime.  Other  minor  improvements  have  been  made 
regarding  the  quantity  of  chlorine  absorbed  by  the  lime  un- 
der certain  conditions  which  will  be  noticed  more  particularly 
hereafter. 

Notwithstanding  all  t^hese  discoveries  and  applications,  the 
real  nature  of  the  decoloring  agent  was  still  unknown ;  it 
was  prepared  by  digesting  together  a  mixture  of  common  salt, 
peroxide  of  manganese  and  sulphuric  acid  ;  a  decomposition 
took  place  which  was  explained  as  follows : — The  sulphuric 
acid  combined  with  the  soda  of  the  salt  and  set  the  muriatic 
acid,  which  was  in  union  with  the  soda,  at  liberty.  The 
oxide  of  manganese  gave  off  a  part  of  its  oxygen,  which  com- 
bined with  the  free  muriatic  acid  and  formed  oxygenated 
muriatic  acid — a  name  which  was  first  applied  to  this  new 
substance  ;  but  after  being  introduced  into  the  arts  this  name 
was  considered  too  unwieldy  for  common  use,  and  was,  there- 
fore, contracted  into  oxy-muriatic  acid.  It  was  ultimately 
contracted  by  the  workmen  into  oxygen,  and,  notwithstand- 
ing the  discovery  of  Sir  H.  Davy,  in  1811,  that  oxy-muriatic 
acid  was  not  common  muriatic  acid  with  more  oxygen,  but  a 
simple  body  which  he  called  chlorine — the  name  oxygen  is 
still  given  to  bleaching  powder,  and  all  its  preparations.  We 
need  scarcely  tell  the  reader  that  this  is  erroneous,  in  so  far  as 
oxygen  is  the  name  of  another  element  differing  widely  from 
chlorine  both  in  its  nature  and  properties.  It  is  also  a  great 
evil  to  the  workmen  themselves,  by  incorporating  in  their 
minds  the  properties  of  one  substance  with  those  of  another. 
We  still  remember  the  difficulty  we  were  in  when  hearing 
that  it  was  the  oxygen  of  the  air  that  supported  life,  and  that 
it  was  the  same  oxygen  which  turned  the  green  color  of  the 
goods  while  in  the  vat  to  blue  when  exposed  to  the  atmos- 
phere, and  at  the  same  time,  seeing  bleaching  liquor,  which 
was  also  termed  oxygen,  destroying  blues,  and  felt  that  we 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


201 


could  not  breathe  its  gas  but  with  the  greatest  difficulty.  To 
solve  this  puzzle,  every  chemical  book  we  could  find  was 
examined  for  remarks  on  oxygen  ;  but,  to  our  mortification, 
not  one  of  these  remarks  alluded  to  its  bleaching  properties. 
We  doubt  not  but  many  others  have  been  in  the  same  dilem- 
ma. The  following  order  will  show  our  chemical  friends  the 
ridiculous  position  dyers  and  bleachers  place  themselves  in  by 
retaining  such  names  : — 

Glasgow,  ,  1840. 

"  Messrs.  *  *  Will  please  send,  at  their  earliest  conve- 
nience, a  cask  of  their  strongest  oxygen,  containing  as  near 
as  possible  2  cwt. ;  let  it  be  newly  made  and  dry,  the  last  was 
damp,  so  that  in  a  few  days  it  became  like  as  much  clay,  and 
lost  the  most  of  its  strength." 

Your  attention  will  oblige, 

Yours,  &c,  &c. 

Chemic  is  a  common  name  for  bleaching  liquor  in  many 
print  works  ;  and  we  know  that  there  are  many  more  erro- 
neous names  for  other  substances.  There  is,  however,  no 
better  name  for  the  substances  we  have  been  describing  than 
bleaching  powder,  or,  if  in  solution,  bleaching -liquor. 

It  is  sufficiently  well  known  that  the  method  of  making 
bleaching-powder  is  to  expose  the  hydrate  of  lime  [slaked 
lime)  in  fine  powder  to  an  atmosphere  of  chlorine,  till  the 
lime  ceases  to  absorb  more  of  the  gas.  When  the  lime  is  in 
combination  with  an  extra  atom  of  water  it  will  absorb  much 
more  chlorine  than  when  it  has  just  as  much  water  as  will 
slake  it.  The  chlorine  is  passed  into  large  vessels  or  cham- 
bers, furnished  with  shelves,  upon  which  is  placed  the  lime. 
Bleaching  powder  is  white  and  pulverulent ;  it  has  a  hot,  bit- 
ter, and  astringent  taste,  and  a  peculiar  smell.  When  di- 
gested in  water  it  leaves  behind  carbonate  of  lime,  and 
some  other  impurities. 

Some  of  the  Continental  chemists  first  suggested  that  the 
chlorine  was  not  merely  absorbed  and  retained  by  the  lime, 
but  that  it  combined  with  it  and  formed  one  or  more  definite 
compounds.    This  has  led  to  a  great  deal  of  research,  but 

26 


202 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


scarcely  any  definite  conclusions — there  being  various  com- 
pounds of  chlorine  which  may  be  formed  during  the  prepara- 
tion of  bleaching  powder,  and  which  possess  bleaching  proper- 
ties as  well  as  the  chlorine  alone  ;  but  the  details  of  these 
researches  do  not  come  within  our  limits.* 

The  best  bleaching-powder  of  commerce  seldom  contains 
above  thirty  per  cent,  of  chlorine  available  in  bleaching  ;  but 
there  are  few  substances  which  the  dyer  or  bleacher  use. 
more  liable  to  change ;  indeed,  from  its  first  formation,  there 
seems  to  be  a  constant  chemical  action  going  on  between  the 
chlorine  and  the  lime  ;  oxygen  is  disengaged,  and  chloride  of 
calcium  is  formed — a  substance  which  possesses  no  bleaching 
properties.  These  changes  may  be  much  retarded  by  keep- 
ing the  powder  perfectly  dry,  or  by  dissolving  it  in  cold  water, 
and  keeping  the  solution  excluded  from  the  air.  Chloride  of 
lime  (bleaching-powder)  does  not  attract  moisture  from  the 
atmosphere  as  is  supposed  by  dyers,  but  when  exposed  to  the 
atmosphere,  it  is  changed  more  rapidly  into  the  chloride  of 
calcium,  a  substance  that  is  very  deliquescent,  and  allowing 
that  the  lime  previously  contained  two  atoms  of  water,  which 
combining  with  the  chloride  of  calcium,  when  formed,  places 
this  salt  in  the  best  circumstances  for  attracting  more  water 
from  the  air,  thus  hastening  the  destruction  of  the  remaining 
chloride  of  lime.  We  have  seen  good  bleaching-powder,  by 
a  little  inattention,  reduced  to  this  state  in  a  few  weeks,  and 
its  bleaching  properties  almost  totally  destroyed. 

As  chloride  of  lime  loses  its  bleaching  properties  by  stand- 
ing, and  several  other  circumstances,  it  is  of  the  utmost  con- 
sequence to  the  consumer,  that  he  have  some  means  of  de- 
termining its  real  value,  both  for  the  sake  of  safety  and  accu- 
racy in  his  processes,  and  its  commercial  worth.  We  have 
seen  casks  of  bleaching  powder  which  did  not  contain  above 
ten  per  cent,  of  chlorine,  charged  and  paid  for  at  the  same 
rate  as  that  which  contained  thirty  per  cent.  ;  but  not  having 
the  means  of  testing  it  previously,  the  quality  was  not  dis- 


*  Whoever  feels  interested  in  them,  will  find  a  series  of  papers  upon  the  subject 
in  the  second  volume  of  the  "  General  Records  of  Science,"  by  Balard. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


203 


covered  till  the  salt  was  in  solution  ;  indeed  we  are  not  aware 
of  any  relative  prices  according  to  the  quality  of  this  article, 
although  with  a  very  little  care,  and  trifling  expense,  the 
dyer  may  know  the  value  of  the  article  he  is  about  to  pur- 
chase, and  of  course  only  pay  accordingly.  The  first  method 
of  determining  the  value  of  bleaching-powder  was  by  sul- 
phate of  indigo,  but  the  indigo  solution  alters  by  keeping, 
and  is  therefore  objectionable.  "  Several  exact  methods," 
says  Graham,  in  his  Elements  of  Chemistry,  "  of  which  that 
in  which  sulphate  of  iron  is  used,  appears  to  be  entitled  to 
preference.  This  method  reposes  upon  the  circumstance  that 
the  chlorine  of  chloride  of  lime  converts  a  salt  of  the  prot- 
oxide into  a  salt  of  the  peroxide  of  iron.  It  is  found  by  ex- 
perience that  ten  grains  of  chlorine  are  capable  of  perox 
idizing  78  grains  of  crystalized  sulphate  of  iron."  To  deter- 
mine the  per  centage  of  chlorine  in  a  sample  of  bleaching- 
powder,  according  to  Mr.  Graham's  plan,  proceed  as  fol- 
lows : — 

Some  good  crystals  of  protosulphate  of  iron  (copperas)  are  to  be  pounded  and 
dried  by  pressing  between  folds  of  cloth ;  78  grains  are  dissolved  in  about  two 
ounces  of  water  acidulated  by  a  few  drops  either  of  sulphuric  acid  or  muriatic  acid; 
then  50  grains  of  the  chloride  of  lime  to  be  examined,  are  dissolved  in  about  two 
ounces  of  water,  by  rubbing  them  together  in  a  mortar,  and  the  whole  poured  into 
a  vessel  graduated  into  a  hundred  parts.    The  common  alkalimeter  will  pjg  g 
do.    This  is  straight  glass,  tube,  or,  generally,  a  very  narrow  jar  about 
f  ths  of  an  inch  in  width,  and  14  inches  high,  mounted  upon  a  foot, 
as  shown  in  Fig.  2,  capable  at  least  of  containing  a  thousand  grains 
of  water,  and  graduated  into  a  hundred  parts.    The  jar  containing  the 
50  grains  of  chloride  of  lime  is  filled  up  to  the  highest  graduation  by  the 
addition  of  water,  and  the  whole  is  well  mixed.    The  clear  of  this  solu- 
tion is  gradually  poured  into  the  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,  till  the  latter 
is  completely  peroxidized.    This  is  known  by  means  of  red  prussiate  of 
potash,  which  gives  a  blue  precipitate  with  the  protoxide,  but  not  with 
the  peroxide  of  iron.    A  white  plate  is  spotted  over  with  small  drops  of 
the  prussiate ;  a  drop  of  iron  solution  is  mixed  with  one  of  these  after 
every  addition  of  chloride  of  lime ;  and  the  additions  continued  so  long  ^Ht_J~^ 
as  the  prussiate  drops  are  colored  blue.    They  may  be  colored  green,  but 
that  is  of  no  moment.    When  the  iron  is  peroxidized,  the  number  of  graduations 
or  measures  of  chloride  of  lime  required  to  produce  that  effect  is  noted ;  the  quan- 
tity of  chlorine  in  the  50  grains  of  bleaching-powder  is  now  known,  being  ascer- 
tained by  proportion.    Thus,  if  it  required  68  measures  of  the  bleaching  solution, 
then  as  68  is  to  10,  so  100  is  to  14*7,  the  chlorine  in  the  50  grains  of  powder;  this 


204 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


being  multiplied  by  two  gives  the  per  centage  of  chlorine  in  the  sample,  which  is 
294"* 

Another  process  has  been  recommended  by  Gay  Lussac, 
which  combines  simplicity  with  accuracy,  and  is  coming  into 
general  use  with  the  manufacturers  of  bleaching-powder, 
and  is  as  follows  : — 

A  solution  of  arsenious  acid  is  made  in  muriatic  acid,  and 
diluted  with  water.  On  adding  a  solution  of  chloride  of 
lime,  the  muriatic  acid  takes  the  lime  ;  the  chlorine  decom- 
poses the  water,  combining  with  its  hydrogen,  while  the  oxy- 
gen unites  with  the  arsenious  acid,  and  converts  it  into 
arsenic  acid.  When  the  arsenious  solution  is  tinged  with 
sulphate  of  indigo,  and  bleaching  liquor  added,  there  is  no 
change  takes  place  on  the  indigo  until  the  whole  arsenious 


*  The  following  method  of  determining  the  strength  of  bleaching  salts  has  been 
recommended  by  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences: — "  If  we  pour  into  a  gradu- 
ated tube,  one  measure  of  common  ink,  and  then  add  successively,  proceeding  by 
fourths,  J,  I,  f ,  1|,  1J,  &c.  measures  of  water,  we  shall  of  course  obtain  inks  more 
and  more  pale  in  the  same  proportion.  Lines  are  to  be  drawn  very  near  together 
on  a  sheet  of  paper,  with  the  inks  thus  obtained ;  that  is,  for  the  sake  of  conve- 
nience, a  line  is  to  be  drawn  after  each  addition  of  the  water,  which  method  will 
readily  give  us  lines  growing  regularly  paler  and  paler  in  a  fixed  proportion. 
When  this  is  done,  we  are  to  cut  off  with  a  punch,  of  the  same  size,  small  disks 
of  the  paper  thus  ruled,  so  that  each  disk  shall  contain  lines  of  all  the  different 
strengths,  from  the  deepest  to  the  palest.  If  we  now  wish  to  determine  compara- 
tively the  strength  of  a  sample  of  chloride  of  lime  (bleaching  salts),  we  have  only 
to  take  a  small  quantity  of  it,  and  wet  it  sufficiently  to  make  a  conical  cake,  the 
base  of  which  must  cover  exactly  one  of  the  pieces  of  paper,  upon  which  it  must 
be  suffered  to  stand  for  about  five  minutes.  The  number  of  lines  effaced  will  then 
give  the  comparative  strength  of  the  chloride. 

"  As  these  trials  are  only  comparative,  we  must  always  make  use  of  the  same 
ink ;  and  a  trial  should  have  been  previously  made  with  paper  ruled  by  it,  and 
bleaching-powder,  the  strength  of  which  had  been  accurately  determined  by  other 
methods ;  this  previous  trial  furnishes  us  with  the  standard  of  comparison.  In 
the  case  of  bleaching  liquors  (as  Labarraque's  disinfecting  soda  liquid,  or  the  chlo- 
ride of  soda,  &e.)  a  given  quantity  must  be  poured  into  a  graduated  tube;  the  trial 
piece  of  paper  is  then  to  be  introduced  into  the  same,  and  there  to  remain  for  a  de- 
terminate space  of  time,  to  be  acted  on  by  the  liquid.  While  the  action  is  going 
on,  it  is  better  to  cover  the  piece  of  paper  by  a  wine  glass  or  tumbler."  Some 
chloride  of  lime  furnished  by  Mr.  de  Reze,  from  the  de  Vic  mines,  erased  com- 
pletely all  the  lines  from  a  piece  of  paper,  whilst  the  best  chloride  (of  commerce) 
of  Paris,  destroyed  only  f  f  ths  of  the  lines  of  a  piece  of  paper  ruled  with  the  same 
ink. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


205 


acid  is  transformed  into  arsenic  acid  ;  but  the  first  drop  after 
this  discolors  the  indigo. 

The  correctness  of  this  test  is  founded  upon  the  knowledge 
of  what  proportion  of  chlorine  is  necessary  to  oxidize  the 
arsenious  acid  in  the  test  solution.  Various  proportions  have 
been  proposed  as  the  standard  strength  of  the  solution,  but 
it  does  not  matter  much  what  proportions  are  used  provided 
the  operator  knows  what  proportion  of  chlorine  is  necessary 
to  transform  it,  and  being  careful  always  to  have  it  the  same. 
The  best  proportions  for  general  use  are  those  that  require 
the  least  calculation.  The  following  proportions  we  have 
found  to  do  very  well,  and  to  be  easily  counted : — 

Take  one  ounce  of  arsenious  acid  (common  arsenic  of  the  shops),  and  dissolve 
it  by  digestion  for  a  few  minutes  at  a  boiling  heat,  in  24  ounces  by  measure  of 
pure  muriatic  acid,  then  add  46  ounces  by  measure  of  distilled  water;  but  in  case 
of  any  loss  by  evaporation  during  digestion,  it  is  better  to  have  a  vessel  which  con- 
tains up  to  a  certain  mark  70  ounces,  and  when  the  acid  solution  is  put  into  it,  to 
fill  up  to  the  mark  with  water.  This  may  be  bottled  and  put  by  as  the  standard 
test  liquor.  Every  three  ounces  by  measure  of  it  are  equivalent  to  twenty-five 
grains  of  chlorine. 

When  a  sample  of  bleaching-powder  is  to  be  tried,  two 
hundred  grains  are  carefully  weighed  and  dissolved  in  the 
manner  already  described,  in  twice  as  much  water  as  will  fill 
the  alkalimeter,  or  any  other  vessel  graduated  into  a  hundred 
parts.  Three  ounces  of  the  arsenious  solution  are  measured 
out,  and  put  into  a  glass  jar  or  tumbler,  and  tinged  with  sul- 
phate of  indigo.  The  alkalimeter  is  now  filled  with  the 
bleaching  liquor,  which  is  added  slowly  to  the  arsenious  solu- 
tion, stirring  constantly,  and  watching  every  drop  that  is 
added  for  the  decoloring  of  the  indigo.  If  the  sample  be  so 
poor  in  chlorine  that  one  full  of  the  alkalimeter  will  not 
change  the  color  of  the  indigo,  it  may  be  filled  again,  and  the 
process  continued  till  the  indigo  is  decolored,  and  the  whole 
number  of  graduations  taken  to  effect  this  carefully  noted — 
the  fewer  the  number  of  graduations  required,  the  richer  the 
sample  is  in  chlorine.  Now,  as  every  three  ounces  of  the  test 
liquor  contains  arsenious  acid  equivalent  to  25  grains  of  chlo- 
rine, if  the  hundred  measures  effect  the  change  of  the  arse- 


206 


DYEING 


AND  CALICO 


PRINTING. 


nious  into  the  arsenic  acid,  the  value  of  the  sample  is  exactly 
25  per  cent. ;  in  other  words,  every  four  graduations  taken  to 
effect  this  change  indicates  one  per  cent,  of  chlorine.  These 
equivalents  were  practically  determined,  and  may  differ  a 
little  from  the  theoretical  calculations  by  atomic  numbers, 
but  the  difference  does  not  vary  above  a  half  per  cent.,  and  is 
not  of  much  consequence  in  practice.  The  following  table 
will  serve  as  a  guide  to  those  who  may  adopt  our  pro- 
portions : — 


Mea- 
sures- 

Per  cent. 

Mea- 
sures. 

Per  cent. 

Mea- 
sures. 

Per  cent. 

Mea- 
sures. 

Per  cent. 

150 

1666 

127 

19-68 

104 

2403 

81 

30-86 

149 

16-77 

126 

19-84 

103 

24-27 

80 

31-24 

148 

16-89 

125 

2000 

102 

24-51 

79 

31-64 

147 

1700 

124 

2016 

101 

24-75 

78 

3205 

146 

1712 

123 

20-32 

100 

2500 

77 

32-46 

145 

17-24 

122 

20-49 

99 

25-25 

76 

32-89 

144 

17-36 

121 

20-66 

98 

25-40 

75 

33-33 

143 

17-48 

120 

20-83 

97 

25-77 

74 

33-78 

142 

17-60 

119 

2100 

96 

2604 

73 

34  24 

141 

17-73 

118 

2118 

95 

26-31 

72 

34-72 

140 

17-85 

117 

21-36 

94 

26-58 

71 

35-21 

139 

17-98 

116 

21-55 

93 

26-87 

70 

35-71 

138 

1811 

115 

21-73 

92 

2717 

69 

36-23 

137 

18-25 

114 

21-93 

91 

27-48 

68 

36-75 

136 

18-38 

113 

2212 

90 

27-77 

67 

37-31 

135 

1851 

112 

22-32 

89 

28-08 

66 

37-87 

134 

18-65 

111 

22-52 

88 

28-40 

65 

38-46 

133 

18-79 

110 

22-72 

87 

28-73 

64 

39-09 

132 

18-94 

109 

22-93 

86 

2906 

63 

39-68 

131 

19.08 

108 

2314 

85 

29-41 

62 

40-32 

130 

19-23 

107 

23-36 

84 

29-76 

61 

40-98 

129 

19-38 

106 

23-58 

83 

3012 

60 

41-26 

128 

19-53 

105 

23.81 

82 

30-48 

The  above  table  includes  almost  the  whole  range  of  per 
oentage  of  the  bleaching  powder  of  commerce ;  but  should 
the  dyer  meet  with  any  not  included  in  the  table,  the  per 
centage  may  be  calculated  as  follows.  As  the  number  of 
measures  is  to  100,  so  is  25  to  the  answer  required.  Say,  for 
example,  the  measure  is  160, 

then  160  :  100  :  :  25  :  15  62. 

Any  of  the  two  methods  just  described,  may  be  performed  in 
a  few  minutes  ;  and  in  a  substance  that  is  liable  to  such  de- 
terioration, it  is  surely  of  importance  that  the  purchaser  have 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


207 


some  knowledge  of  the  quality  of  the  article  he  is  purchasing, 
and  that  the  workmen  know  something  of  the  strength  of  the 
substances  they  are  working  with.*  May  not  a  certain  price 
be  fixed  to  a  standard  strength  of  bleaching  powder,  and  to 
rise  and  fall  according  to  the  per  centage  of  chlorine  which  it 
contains,  in  the  same  manner  as  practised  with  soda  ash  ?  it 
would  at  least  save  much  annoyance,  and  the  common  com- 
plaint, "  that  the  last  cask  was  not  so  good  as  the  former." 
The  average  per  centage  of  good  bleaching  powder  varies 
from  25  to  30  per  cent.  Was  this  average  fixed  at  three 
pence  per  pound,  which  has  been  the  constant  price  for 
years  past  in  England,  for  bleaching  powder,  then  that  which 
contains  from  20  to  25  would  be  2|d.,  and  from  15  to  20  the 
price  would  be  2d.  Above  30  per  cent,  the  value  ought  of 
course  to  rise  in  the  same  ratio.  The  adoption  of  some  such 
plan,  we  are  confident,  would  be  satisfactory  to  all  parties. 

To  prepare  chloride  of  lime  for  bleaching,  an  aqueous  so- 
lution is  requisite.  For  this  purpose,  a  quantity  is  put  into  a 
large  vessel  filled  with  water,  and  well  stirred,  and  allowed  to 
settle ;  this  is  termed  the  stock  liquor.  There  are  no  definite 
proportions  for  making  up  this  vat ;  every  bleacher  makes  up 
his  stock-vat  to  a  certain  strength  indicated  by  Twaddell's 
hydrometer ;  a  most  fallaceous  test,  as  the  chloride  of  cal- 
cium, and  every  other  article  which  is  soluble  in  water,  al- 
though it  has  no  bleaching  properties,  affects  the  hydrometer. 
Care  should  be  taken  that  this  stock-vat  be  excluded  from 
the  air  as  much  as  possible,  as  the  lime  absorbs  carbonic  acid, 
and  the  chlorine  being  set  at  liberty,  occasions  considerable 
loss.  This  may  be  illustrated  by  putting  a  little  upon  a  flat 
plate,  and  allowing  it  to  stand  a  few  days,  when  it  will  be 
found  to  have  lost  its  bleaching  power  altogether. 

Having  the  bleaching  liquor  prepared,  the  next  process  is 
the  preparation  of  the  alkaline  leys.    Some  put  in  a  quan- 


*  A  prussic  acid  test  has  long  been  employed  by  Mr.  John  Mercer,  of  Oaken- 
shaw,  near  Manchester.  His  test  to  mark  the  point  at  which  the  prussic  acid 
becomes  saturated,  is  the  red  oxide  of  iron.  A  bit  of  calico  dyed  buff  with  iron,  is 
touched  with  the  solution  after  each  addition  of  the  chlorine,  and  as  soon  as  it 
ceases  to  become  blue,  enough  of  the  chlorine  has  been  added. 


208 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tity  of  carbonate  of  soda  (common  soda),  or  carbonate  of 
potash  (pearl  ash),  into  the  boiler  where  the  goods  are  to  be 
boiled,  without  any  previous  preparation.  This  may  give  a 
good  enough  white,  but  not  so  permanent ;  and  if  any  oil  be 
present,  carbonated  alkalies  do  not  saponify  it ;  it  therefore  re- 
mains in  the  cloth,  and  acts  as  a  resist  to  any  color  that  may 
be  applied.  The  alkalies  ought  always  to  be  made  caustic 
previous  to  being  used  for  bleaching.  This  is  done  by  boiling 
the  carbonated  alkali  with  newly  slaked  lime  ;  the  lime  corn- 
bines  with  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  alkali,  and  falls  to  the 
bottom,  while  the  caustic  alkali  remains  in  solution.  With- 
out detailing  the  various  methods  practised,  some  of  which 
are  not  good,  we  shall  rather  give  what  we  consider  the  best. 
The  carbonate  of  potash  ought  to  be  dissolved  in  no  less 
than  six  times  its  weight.  If  less  than  the  prescribed  quan- 
tity of  water  be  used,  the  potash  is  not  deprived  of  its  car- 
bonic acid.  The  reason  ascribed  for  this  singular  phenom- 
enon is,  that  both  caustic  potash  and  its  carbonate,  have  a 
strong  affinity  for  water ;  and  when  less  than  six  times  its 
weight  is  used,  there  is  sufficient  water  to  supply  the  carbon- 
ate, but  not  the  caustic,  and  hence,  the  carbonate  is  not  con- 
verted into  caustic.  The  exact  quantity  of  lime  is  not  ma- 
terial, provided  there  be  enough.  The  lime  ought  to  be  add- 
ed until  a  little  of  the  liquor,  diluted  with  water,  is  found 
not  to  effervesce  upon  the  addition  of  an  acid.  If  soda  be  the 
alkali  used,  five  or  six  times  its  weight  of  water  will  do ;  but 
the  combining  proportion  of  this  substance  being  less  than 
potash,  a  much  greater  quantity  of  lime  is  required.  The 
caustic  solution  is  drawn  into  a  vessel  which  is  kept  closely 
covered.  Since  the  soda  has  been  made  on  the  large  scale 
from  common  salt,  a  preference  has  been  given  to  it  for  man- 
ufacturing purposes,  owing  to  its  cheapness.  It  is  sold  to  dy- 
ers and  bleachers  as  a  dry  white  powder  termed  soda  ash, 
which  is  a  pure  carbonate,  and  is  prepared  as  follows : — 

First,  the  common  salt  is  converted  into  sulphate  of  soda  by  throwing  600  pounds 
of  the  salt  into  the  chamber  of  a  reverberatory  furnace  already  well  heated,  and  run- 
ning down  upon  it  from  an  opening  in  the  roof,  an  equal  weight  of  sulphuric 
acid  of  density  1  600  (150°  Twaddle),  in  a  moderate  stream.    Hydrochloric  acid 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


209 


(muriatic  acid)  is  disengaged  and  carried  up  the  chimney,  and  the  conversion  of 
salt  into  sulphate  of  soda  is  completed  in  four  hours.  Second,  the  sulphate  thus 
prepared  is  reduced  to  powder,  and  mixed  with  an  equal  weight  of  ground  chalk, 
and  half  its  weight  of  coal  ground  and  sifted.  This  mixture  is  introduced  into  a 
very  hot  reverberatory  furnace — about  two  hundred  weight  at  a  time;  it  is  frequent- 
ly stirred  until  it  is  uniformly  heated.  In  about  an  hour  it  fuses ;  it  is  then  well 
stirred  for  about  five  minutes,  and  drawn  out  with  a  rake  into  a  cast-iron  trough, 
in  which  it  is  allowed  to  cool  and  solidify. 

This  is  called  ball  soda,  or  British  barilla,  and  contains 
about  22  per  cent,  of  alkali.  Third,  to  separate  the  salt  from 
insoluble  matter,  the  cake  of  ball  soda,  when  cold,  is  broken 
up,  put  into  vats,  and  covered  by  warm  water.  In  six  hours 
the  solution  is  drawn  off  from  below,  and  the  washing  re- 
peated about  eight  times,  to  extract  all  the  soluble  matter. 
These  liquors  being  mixed  together,  are  boiled  down  to  dry 
ness,  and  afford  a  salt  which  is  principally  carbonate  of  soda, 
with  a  little  caustic  soda  and  sulphuret  of  sodium.  Fourth, 
for  the  purpose  of  getting  rid  of  the  sulphur,  the  salt  is  mix- 
ed with  one-fourth  of  its  bulk  of  sawdust,  and  exposed  to  a 
low  red  heat  in  a  reverberatory  furnace  for  about  four  hours, 
which  converts  the  caustic  soda  into  carbonate,  while  the  sul- 
phur is  carried  off.  This  product,  if  well  conducted,  con- 
tains about  50  per  cent,  of  alkali,  and  forms  the  soda  ash  of 
the  best  quality.  Fifth,  when  crystalized  carbonate  of  soda 
is  wanted,  the  last  salt  is  dissolved  in  water,  allowed  to  set; 
tie,  and  the  clear  liquid  boiled  down  until  a  pellicle  appears 
on  its  surface.  The  solution  is  then  run  into  shallow  boxes 
of  cast-iron  to  crystalize  in  a  cool  place,  and  after  standing 
for  a  week,  the  mother  liquor  is  drawn  off,  the  crystals  drain- 
ed and  broken  up  for  the  market.  This  mother  liquor  is 
evaporated  to  dryness,  and  forms  a  very  impure  soda  ash 
containing  about  30  per  cent,  of  alkali. 

Owing  to  various  circumstances  attending  the  manufacture 
of  soda  ash  its  per  centage  is  very  uncertain,  varying  from 
30  to  50  per  cent.  This  substance  is  generally  priced  accord- 
ing to  its  per  centage.  The  per  centage  may  be  determined 
by  some  such  means  as  we  have  just  described  for  bleaching 
powder,  that  is,  by  having  an  acid  exactly  of  the  strength  at 

27 


210 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


which  100  measures  of  it  will  saturate  100  grains  of  caustic 
soda;  or  the  operator  may  proceed  as  follows  : — 

4  ounces  avoirdupois  of  oil  of  vitriol  are  diluted  with  20  ounces  of  water,  or 
larger  portions  of  acid  and  water  may  be  mixed  in  these  proportions.  About 
three-fourths  of  an  ounce  of  bicarbonate  of  soda  is  heated  strongly  by  a  lamp  for 
a  few  minutes  to  obtain  pure  carbonate  of  soda,  of  which  171  grains  are  imme- 
diately weighed,  that  quantity  containing  100  grains  of  soda.  This  portion  of 
carbonate  of  soda  is  dissolved  in  4  or  5  ounces  of  hot  water,  and  the  alkalimeter — 
the  graduated  tube  described  above — is  filled  up  to  the  highest  gradation  with  the 
dilute  acid.  The  acid  is  poured  gradually  into  the  soda  solution  till  the  action  of 
the  latter  upon  blue  litmus  test  paper  ceases  to  be  alkaline,  and  becomes  distinctly 
acid,  and  the  measures  of  acid  necessary  to  produce  that  change  are  accurately 
observed ;  say  it  requires  90  measures.  A  plain  cylindrical  jar,  of  which  the  ca- 
pacity is  about  a  pint  and  a  half,  is  graduated  into  100  parts,  each  containing  100 
grain  measures  of  water,  or  ten  times  as  much  as  the  divisions  of  the  alkalimeter- 
This  jar  is  filled  up  with  the  dilute  acid  to  the  extent  of  90,  or  whatever  number 
of  the  alkalimeter  divisions  of  acid  were  found  to  neutralize  100  grains  of  soda, 
and  neater  is  added  to  make  up  the  acid  liquid  to  100  measures. 

This  forms  a  test  acid  of  which  100  measures  neutralize 
and  are  equivalent  to  100  grains  of  soda,  or  one  measure  of 
acid  to  one  grain  of  caustic  soda.  This  acid  ought  to  be  kept 
in  a  well-stoppered  bottle.  By  a  curious  coincidence,  strong 
oil  of  vitriol  diluted  with  11  times  its  weight  of  water,  gives 
this  test  acid  exactly ;  but,  as  oil  of  vitriol  varies  a  little  in 
strength,  it  is  better  to  form  the  test  acid  in  the  manner  de- 
scribed than  to  trust  to  that  mixture.  Twenty-one  measures 
of  the  test  acid  should  neutralize  100  grains  of  crystalized 
carbonate  of  soda,  and  68*5  measures  100  grains  of  pure  an- 
hydrous carbonate  of  soda.  To  test  a  sample  of  soda  ash, 
proceed  as  follows  : — 

100  grains  are  weighed  and  dissolved  in  two  or  three  ounces  of  hot,  water.  Tne 
alkalimeter  is  filled  with  the  test  acid,  and  gently  poured  into  this  solution,  stirring, 
as  each  drop  is  added,  until  a  piece  of  blue  litmus  paper,  which  may  be  kept  in 
eontact  with  the  liquor,  is  turned  red.  The  number  of  gradations  taken  to  effect 
this  indicates  the  per  centage  of  caustic  alkali  in  the  sample. 

Another  method  of  using  this  test  acid  is  by  weight.  The 
acid  is  made  to  such  a  strength  as  one  or  two  grains  by 
weight  will  exactly  neutralize  one  grain  of  pure  alkali.  The 
vessel  commonly  used  for  this  purpose  is  of  the  annexed 
form,  Fig.  3.    It  is  filled  with  the  test  acid,  and  the  whole 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


211 


correctly  weighed.    The  acid  is  then  Fig.  3. 

dropped  from  the  small  orifice  into 
a  weighed  quantity  of  the  carbonate 
until  a  neutral  sulphate  is  produced. 
The  bottle  with  its  contents  are  then 
again  weighed ;  the  loss  of  weight 
gives,  by  calculation,  the  quantity 
of  real  alkali  in  the  sample.  Say 
that  every  two  grains  of  the  test 

acid  are  equivalent  to  one  grain  of  pure  soda,  and  that 
twenty-five  grains  of  soda  ash  required  twenty  grains  of  acid 
to  neutralize  it,  the  real  alkali  present  will  be  ten.  Now 
25  being  the  fourth  of  100,  the  10  is  multiplied  by  4, 
giving  40  as  the  per  centage  of  the  sample.  This  method 
of  testing  carbonated  alkalies  is  becoming  very  general ; 
and,  provided  the  operator  has  a  good  balance,  it  is  more 
correct  than  that  with  the  graduated  tube,  and  equally 
simple. 

The  following  table,  constructed  by  Dr.  Dalton,  will  be 
found  useful  to  the  operative  bleacher,  showing  the  quantity 
of  caustic  soda  in  his  solutions,  indicated  by  the  hydrometer 
(not  TwaddelPs) :— 


Density  of  solu- 
tion indicated  by 
Hydrometer. 

Alkali  per 
cent. 

Density  of  solu- 
tion indicated  by 
Hydrometer. 

Alkali  per 
cent. 

2-00 

77-8 

1-40 

29-0 

1-85 

63-6 

1-36 

260 

1-72 

53-8 

JL-32 

230 

1-63 

46-6 

1-29 

190 

1-56 

41-2 

1-23 

160 

1-50 

36-8 

1-18 

130 

1-47 

340 

112 

9-0 

1-44 

310 

106 

4-7 

As  the  hydrometers  generally  used  in  dye-houses  are  those 
known  by  the  name  of  TwaddelPs,  which  is  an  arbitrary 
scale,  the  densities  indicated  in  the  above  table  may  be  re- 
duced to  TwaddelPs  scale  by  cutting  off  the  first  figure,  and 
adding  a  cipher  to  the  last  two,  and  dividing  this  by  5,  except 
the  first  number  on  the  table,  which  is  made  1000,  and  divi- 


212 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ded  by  5.  Let  us,  for  example,  take  1*18,  which  is  a  regular 
density  for  the  caustic  ley,  we  have  180  +  5  =  36,  of  Twad- 
dell,  which  is  a  little  more  than  1  lb.  of  caustic  soda  to  the 
gallon  of  water,  and  will  require  about  2\  lbs.  of  soda-ash  of 
42  per  cent,  to  the  gallon  of  water,  to  give  caustic  soda  of  this 
density. 

The  first*  operation  in  bleaching  cloth  is  steeping  it  in  a 
waste  ley  or  tepid  water  for  a  number  of  hours,  generally  over 
night ;  this  is  termed  the  rot  steep ;  its  object  is  to  loosen  the 
paste  and  dirt  that  may  have  adhered  to  the  cloth  during  its 
manufacture.  This  steep  ought  not  to  be  hotter  than  blood 
heat,  otherwise,  if  oil  be  upon  the  cloth,  it  is  not  saponified, 
neither  is  it  so  easily  taken  out  after ;  in  all  cases  when  oil  is 
observed,  it  ought  to  be  taken  out  by  rubbing  it  with  soft  soap 
and  cold  water  previous  to  putting  it  into  the  steep.  The 
goods  are  thoroughly  washed  from  this  steep  in  the  dash 
wheel,  but,  if  a  wheel  is  not  convenient,  they  are  tramped  in 
water,  and  then  washed  by  rinsing  them  through  water  with 
the  hands ;  they  are  then  ready  for  the  boiler.  The  boiling- 
ley  is  made  up  by  taking  of  the  strong  caustic  ley,  prepared 
as  described  above,  a  quantity  equal  to  about  six  pounds 
weight  of  alkali  to  one  hundred  pounds  weight  of  cloth,  hav- 


*  All  cotton  goods,  especially  such  as  are  to  be  printed,  must  in  the  outset  be 
subjected  to  the  operation  of  singeing,  for  the  purpose  of  removing  the  fibrous  down 
or  nap.  There  are  two  methods,  the  old  and  new,  of  effecting  this.  The  first 
consists  in  drawing  the  cloth  swiftly  over  a  red-hot  semi-cylindrical  bar  of  copper, 
three-quarters  of  an  inch  in  thickness,  placed  horizontally  over  the  flue  of  a  fire- 
place, situated  immediately  at  one  end  of  the  bar.  The  second,  or  new  method, 
consists  in  passing  the  cloth  rapidly  through  a  coal-gas  flame,  for  which  a  patent 
was  obtained  by  Mr.  Hall  of  Basford,  near  Nottingham,  in  the  year  1818.  The 
gas  issues  from  numerous  perforations  through  the  upper  surface  of  a  horizontal 
tube,  and  the  cloth  to  be  singed  is  drawn  over  the  flame  rapidly  by  rollers.  In  the 
method  first  patented,  the  flame  is  drawn  up  through  the  web  of  cotton  or  other 
fabric  by  a  flue  leading  into  a  common  draught-chimney;  but  the  draught  not  being 
always  sufficient  to  draw  the  flame  through  immediately,  an  improvement  in  the 
apparatus  was  devised  by  Mr.  Hall,  and  patented  in  1823,  which  consisted  in  plac- 
ing immediately  over  the  gas-flame  a  horizontal  tube,  with  a  slit  lengthwise  through 
its  lower  surface,  which  tube  is  placed  in  communication  with  a  fan  or  an  exhaust- 
ing apparatus.  An  arrangement  of  this  kind,  so  constructed  as  to  allow  the  pass- 
age of  two  pieces  of  cloth  at  the  same  time  over  two  gas-flames,  is  capable  of  singe- 
ing, when  properly  managed,  fifty  pieces  per  hour. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


213 


mg  as  much  water  in  the  boiler  as  will  allow  the  goods  suffi- 
cient play  when  boiling ; — they  ought  to  boil  for  three  hours. 
When  goods  are  for  light  delicate  colors,  such  as  Prussian 
blues,  the  success  of  a  bleach  for  such  colors  depends  much 
lpon  a  good  boil.    The  goods  are  well  washed  from  the  boil 
and  allowed  to  drain ;  the  draining  is  facilitated  by  pouring 
hot  water  upon  them ;  they  are  then  hanked  up,  taking  out 
all  the  twists,  and  laid  into  the  bleaching  liquor  as  loose  as 
possible.    The  vessels  which  contain  this  liquor  are  large, 
made  either  of  stone  or  wood,  and  are  termed  bleaching-vats 
or  troughs.    To  prepare  this  liquor  these  troughs  are  filled 
with  water,  and  a  quantity  of  the  stock-liquor  added  until  the 
required  strength  is  obtained,  which  is  indicated  by  its  action 
upon  the  sulphate  of  indigo,  in  what  is  termed  the  Fjg  4 
test-glass, — a  vessel  of  the  form  represented  in  Fig.  4.  ^pf 
It  is  filled  to  the  mark  a  with  the  sulphate  of  indigo ; —  | 
this  indigo  is  generally  supplied  by  the  manufacturers  fl|_ 
of  the  powder  as  test  blue ;  the  liquor  is  added  drop 


by  drop  until  the  color  of  the  indigo  is  destroyed ;  the  ^ — 
quantity  taken  to  effect  this  as  denoted  by  the  graduations  is 
termed  its  degree ;  two  degrees  are  considered  a  fair  strength 
for  light  goods,  but,  for  heavy  fabrics,  it  may  be  made  stronger ; 
they  are  allowed  to  steep  in  this  for  several  hours,  varying  ac- 
cording to  the  nature  of  the  goods. 

The  objections  we  had  to  the  use  of  sulphate  of  indigo  as 
a  test  in  the  former  case,  are  equally  applicable  here.  We 
have  found  this  test  to  be  very  uncertain. 

To  return  to  the  bleaching  process. — The  goods,  being  al- 
lowed to  steep  in  the  bleaching-liquor  for  some  hours,  are 
lifted  and  washed,  after  which,  if  they  are  thick,  stout  goods, 
they  are  put  into  a  soar  for  a  little,  then  washed,  and  go 
through  the  same  operations  of  boiling,  liquoring  and  souring, 
as  before ;  but  for  all  common  fabrics,  we  have  found  it  the 
best  practice  to  sweeten*  the  goods  from  the  liquor,  hank  them 
anew,  and  put  them  back  into  a  new  liquor  of  the  same 


*  Building  the  goods  on  a  drainer,  and  pouring  water  upon  them  till  the  water 
ceases  to  taste  of  liquor  as  it  comes  from  them,  is  termed  sweetening. 


214 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


strength,  for  a  few  hours,  wash  them  from  this,  and  allow 
them  to  steep  for  an  hour  in  strong  sour  of  vitriol  and  water — 
about  1\  pint  of  the  former  to  four  gallons  of  the  latter. 
There  is,  perhaps,  no  single  branch  connected  with  the  art 
of  dyeing,  upon  which  there  is  more  difference  of  opinion 
than  bleaching.  Every  one  has  some  peculiarity  of  his  own. 
One  thing,  however,  may  be  noticed ;  namely,  the  necessity 
there  is  of  washing  well  from  the  liquor  before  souring,  as 
any  lime  remaining  upon  the  cloth  will  be  formed  into  an  in- 
soluble sulphate,  and  resist  the  dye.  Some  maintain  that  this 
is  of  no  consequence ;  in  our  opinion,  it  depends  wholly  upon 
the  color  which  is  to  be  dyed  on  the  cloth.  We  have  found 
that  light  pinks,  light  greens,  light  lavenders,  and  sometimes 
light  blues,  when  not  washed  well  from  the  liquor,  were  often 
full  of  white  spots,  which  we  ascribed  to  that  cause ;  but,  for 
other  dark  shades,  we  found  no  difference,  and  for  colors  to  be 
dyed  with  the  bichromate  of  potash  (chrome),  such  as  yel- 
lows, ambers,  and  orange,  we  seldom  give  them  any  sour, 
only  washed  from  the  first  liquor,  and  then  dyed. 

Cotton,  in  the  hank  (yarn),  when  to  be  finished  white, 
goes  through  the  same  process  as  cloth,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  rot  steep;  but,  for  dyeing,  a  quicker  operation 
is  adopted.  All  cotton  yarn  must  be  boiled  in  water  for 
three  or  four  hours  previous  to  being  dyed.  Every  ten 
pounds  weight — constituting  what  is  termed  a  bundle — is 
divided  into  six  equal  numbers  of  spindles,  and  hung  upon 
wooden  pins  about  three  feet  long  and  two  inches  thick ; 
this  is  termed  sticking. 

The  stock-liquor  for  yarn  is  generally  prepared  in  a  cask 
or  pipe,  containing  about  120  gallons  of  water;  to  this  is 
added  about  20  lbs.  of  good  bleaching-powder,  stirred,  and 
allowed  to  settle.  A  small  tub,  of  a  size  in  which  a  bundle 
is  wrought  freely,  is  termed  a  ten  pound  tub ;  this  is  filled 
nearly  two-thirds  full  with  boiling  water,  and  a  bucket  or 
pailful  (about  four  gallons)  of  the  stock-liquor  is  added. 
The  bundle  is  now  let  down  as  quick  as  possible,  and  turned 
over  for  about  ten  minutes,  after  which  it  is  put  through  a 
second  tub  of  the  same  size,  with  water  made  a  little  sour 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


215 


by  adding  about  an  imperial  gill  of  vitriol,  and  wrought  for 
about  five  minutes.  Being  then  well  washed,  it  is  ready  to 
be  dyed  almost  any  light  shade.  By  this  method  two  men 
can  bleach  and  wash  two  hundred  pounds  weight  of  yarn 
in  about  three  hours — what,  by  the  other  process  of  boiling, 
steeping,  and  scouring,  would  have  occupied  two  days. 

Having  detailed  the  present  method  of  bleaching  cotton 
goods  for  dyeing,  we  may  say  a  little  upon  the  chemical 
nature  of  these  processes,  previous  to  the  discovery  of  the 
elementary  nature  of  chlorine.  When  that  substance  was 
considered  a  compound  of  muriatic  acid  and  oxygen,  it  was 
thought  that  the  acid  parted  with  its  oxygen,  which  bleached 
by  the  same  means,  but  more  rapidly,  as  the  air  which  we 
have  described  under  croft  bleaching.  When  the  true  nature 
of  chlorine  was  discovered,  the  theory  was  somewhat  chang- 
ed ;  finding,  as  was  then  supposed,  that  chlorine  did  not 
bleach  except  water  was  present,  it  was  considered  that  the 
chlorine  united  with  the  hydrogen  of  the  water,  forming 
muriatic  acid,  and  the  liberated  oxygen  bleached  as  de- 
scribed.   Thus  oxygen  was  still  the  bleaching  agent. 

The  above  theory  is  still  maintained  and  supported  by 
various  analogies.  We  shall  quote  the  following  from  Gre- 
gory and  Liebig's  edition  of  Turner's  Chemistry,  new  edition, 
1840 : — "  One  of  the  most  important  properties  of  chlorine 
is  its  bleaching  power.  All  animal  and  vegetable  colors  are 
speedily  removed  by  chlorine,  arjd  when  the  color  is  once 
destroyed,  it  can  never  be  restored.*  Davy  proved  that  chlo- 
rine cannot  bleach,  except  water  be  present ;  thus  dry  litmus 
paper  suffers  no  change  in  dry  chlorine,  but  when  water  is 
admitted,  the  color  speedily  disappears.  It  is  well  known, 
also,  that  hydrochloric  acid  (muriatic  acid)  is  always  gene- 
rated when  chlorine  bleaches.    From  these  facts  it  is  inferred 


*  In  at  least  one  case,  however,  which  is  that  of  indigo,  the  color  is  reproducible 
after  having  been  discharged  by  chlorine,  provided  the  quantity  of  chlorine  applied 
to  the  indigo  has  been  no  more  than  sufficient  to  change  the  blue  color  to  a  buff, 
and  not  enough  to  destroy  all  color.  The  rich  crimson  color  into  which  some 
preparations  of  indigo  are  changed  by  chlorine  is  also  convertible  into  blue,  though 
not  to  so  deep  a  shade  as  the  original  indigo. — Parnell. 


216 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


that  water  is  decomposed  during  the  process,  that  its  hydro- 
gen unites  with  chlorine,  and  that  decomposition  of  the  col- 
oring matter  is  occasioned  by  the  oxygen  liberated.  The 
bleaching  property  of  binoxide  of  hydrogen,  and  of  chromic, 
and  permanganic  acids,  of  which  oxygen  is  certainly  the 
decoloring  principle,  leaves  little  doubt  of  the  accuracy  of 
the  foregoing  explanation." 

Another  theory  has  been  advanced,  and  equally,  if  not 
more  tenable,  by  which  the  chlorine  is  supposed  to  act 
directly  upon  the  coloring  matter.  The  following  is  from 
Dr.  Kane's  work  : — "  Formerly  it  was  considered  that  water 
was  necessary  for  this  bleaching,  and  that  the  chlorine  com- 
bined with  the  hydrogen,  while  the  oxygen  of  the  water 
being  thus  thrown  upon  the  organic  substance,  oxidized  it, 
and  formed  a  new  body,  which  was  colorless.  We  have 
shown,  however,  that  this  is  not  the  case,  but  that  the  chlo- 
rine enters  into  the  constitution  of  the  new  substance  formed, 
sometimes  replacing  hydrogen,  at  others,  simply  combining 
with  the  colored  body,  and  in  some,  the  reaction  being  so 
complete,  that  its  immediate  stages  cannot  be  completely 
traced."* 


*  In  most  cases  of  the  destruction  of  vegetable  colors  by  chlorine,  the  decompo- 
sition is  effected,  without  doubt,  through  the  powerful  affinity  of  chlorine  for 
hydrogen,  which  may  be  manifested  in  two  ways ;  1st,  in  the  direct  abstraction  of 
hydrogen  from  the  organic  substance,  and  2dly,  in  the  decomposition  of  water,  the 
hydrogen  of  which  unites  with  the  "chlorine  to  form  hydrochloric  acid,  while  the 
oxygen  of  the  water  decomposes  the  coloring  matter,  forming  carbonic  acid  with 
its  carbon,  and  water  with  its  hydrogen.  Chlorine  does  not  bleach  readily  in  the 
absence  of  all  moisture,  and  hydrochloric  and  carbonic  acids  may  generally  be  dis- 
covered among  the  products.  In  a  few  cases,  however,  the  bleaching  action  of 
chlorine  simply  consists  in  the  direct  combination  of  the  chlorine  with  the  coloring 
matter  to  form  a  compound  which  is  devoid  of  color. 

Chromic  acid  is  another  powerful  bleaching  agent,  which  acts  by  affording 
oxygen  to  the  coloring  matter,  becoming  itself  reduced  to  the  state  of  green  oxide 
of  chromium.  The  color  of  the  vegetable  substance  is  even  more  readily  destroyed 
than  if  chlorine  had  been  applied. 

Most  vegetable  coloring  matters  are  also  bleached  by  sulphurous  acid  in  the 
presence  of  water.  The  action  of  this  substance  is  not  so  energetic  as  that  of  chlo- 
rine, and  differs  from  it  essentially  in  the  circumstance  that  the  colors  are  not  en- 
tirely destroyed,  but  may  in  general  be  restored  by  exposure  to  the  air,  or  by  the 
application  of  a  stronger  acid  or  an  alkali. — Parnell. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


217 


This  theory  is  also  supported  by  several  analogies,  such  as 
the  action  of  chlorine  upon  indigo  already  noticed  ;  but  which 
of  the  changes  alluded  to  by  Dr.  Kane  takes  place  during  the 
bleaching  of  cotton,  is  not  yet  known.  Chloride  of  lime,  says 
the  same  author,  does  not  bleach,  except  an  acid  be  present 
to  combine  with  the  lime,  and  set  the  chlorine  at  liberty ;  but 
this  is  only  conditional.  It  is  true,  that  if  blue  litmus  paper 
be  put  into  a  solution  of  newly  dissolved  chloride  of  lime,  it 
is  not  bleached ;  but  if  the  solution  be  allowed  to  remain  in 
contact  with  the  air  for  an  hour  or  two,  the  lime  combines 
with  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  atmosphere ;  and  if  the  blue 
litmus  paper  be  put  into  this  solution,  it  is  instantly  bleached 
by  the  liberated  chlorine.  Cotton  that  has  not  been  boiled 
in  alkalies,  is  acted  upon  as  the  litmus  paper  in  both  cases ; 
but  if  the  cotton  has  received  a  good  alkaline  boil,  and  is  well 
washed,  the  bleaching  process  goes  on  although  the  bleach 
ing-powder  be  newly  dissolved.  This  shows  that  the  alka- 
line leys  effect  a  change  upon  the  coloring  matter.  The 
nature  of  this  change  we  are  not  as  yet  prepared  to  state : 
several  opinions  have  been  given,  but  they  are  hypothetical, 
and  some  of  them  contrary  to  the  changes  which  are  sup- 
posed to  follow. 

Whenever  the  cloth  is  put  into  the  bleaching  liquor,  there 
are  acids  formed,  the  principal  of  which  is  the  hydrochloric ; 
but  whether  it  is  from  the  chlorine,  combining  with  the 
hydrogen  of  the  water,  or  the  coloring  matter  of  the  goods, 
we  cannot  say, — the  latter  we  think  most  probable.  Our 
opinion  is,  that  the  chlorine  combines  with  the  hydrogen  of 
the  coloring  matter  ;  and  according  to  a  law  we  have  several 
times  alluded  to,  the  remaining  elements  of  the  coloring 
matter  form  a  new  substance,  which  is  soluble,  and  thus 
the  whole  coloring  matter  is  taken  off  the  cloth.  In  vats, 
where  several  hundred  pounds  weight  of  cotton  have  been 
bleached  before  changing  the  liquor,  there  is  evidence  of 
more  substances  remaining  than  merely  a  solution  of  muriate 
of  lime ;  but  what  these  are,  we  dare  not  as  yet  venture  to 
assert.  That  the  bleaching  of  cotton  depends  upon  either 
oxygen  or  chlorine  combining  with  the  coloring  matter,  form- 

28 


218 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ing  a  colorless  oxide  or  chloride,  is  not  consistent  with  the 
fact  that  bleached  goods  are  lighter  than  goods  merely  boiled. 

Such  is  an  outline  of  the  processes  of  bleaching  cotton 
goods  for  dyeing,  as  practised  in  the  most  celebrated  dye- 
works  of  Europe  at  the  present  day  (1846),  and  it  is,  we 
imagine,  more  to  be  relied  upon,  than  anything  on  the  sub- 
ject to  be  found  in  the  books  of  our  predecessors. — For  fur- 
ther information  upon  subjects  connected  with  this  branch 
industry,  see  the  Appendix. 


CHAPTER  II. 


LINEN. 

Preparation  of  Flax  and  Hemp — Processes  of  Bleaching  them — Simpson's  Patent 

Process. 

Linen  contains  more  coloring  matter  than  cotton.  The 
former  loses  nearly  a  third  of  its  weight,  while  the  latter 
loses  not  more  than  a  twentieth.  The  fibres  of  flax  pos- 
sess, in  the  natural  condition,  a  light  gray,  yellow,  or  blond 
color.  By  the  operation  of  rotting,  or,  as  it  is  commonly 
called,  water-rotting,  which  is  employed  to  enable  the  tex- 
tile filaments  to  be  separated  from  the  boon,  or  woody 
matter,  the  color  becomes  darker,  and,  in  consequence  prob- 
ably of  the  putrefaction  of  the  green  matter  of  the  bark,  the 
coloring  substance  appears.  Hence,  flax  prepared  without 
rotting  is  much  paler,  and  its  coloring  matter  may,  in  a  great 
measure,  be  removed  by  washing  with  soap,  leaving  the  fila- 
ments nearly  white. 

The  substance  which  gives  steeped  flax  its  peculiar  tint  is 
insoluble  in  boiling  water,  in  acids,  and  in  alkalies ;  but  it 
possesses  the  property  of  dissolving  in  caustic  or  carbonated 
alkaline  leys,  when  it  has  possessed  the  means  of  dehydro- 
genation  by  previous  exposure  to  oxygen.  Hemp  is,  in  this 
respect,  analogous  to  flax.  The  bleaching  of  both  depends 
upon  this  action  of  oxygen,  and  upon  the  removal  of  the 
acidified  dye,  by  means  of  an  alkali.  This  process  is  effected 
generally  by  the  influence  of  air  in  combination  with  light 
and  moisture  acting  on  the  linen  cloth  laid  upon  the  grass : 
but  chlorine  will  effect  the  same  object  more  expeditiously. 
In  no  case,  however,  is  it  possible  to  acidify  the  color  com- 
pletely at  once,  but  there  must  be  many  alternate  exposures 
to  oxygen  or  chlorine,  and  alkali,  before  the  flax  becomes 


220 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


white.  It  is  this  circumstance  alone  which  renders  the 
bleaching  of  linen  an  apparently  complicated  business. 

In  order  to  avoid  repetition,  where  washing  is  mentioned, 
it  must  always  be  understood  that  the  linen  is  taken  to  the 
wash-stocks  or  dash-wheel,  and  washed  well  in  them  for 
some  hours.  This  part  of  the  work  can  never  be  overdone ; 
and  on  its  being  properly  executed  between  every  part  of  the 
bucking,  boiling,  steeping  in  the  chloride  of  lime  solution, 
and  souring,  not  a  little  of  the  success  of  bleaching  depends. 
By  exposure  is  meant,  that  the  linen  cloth  is  taken  and 
spread  upon  the  bleach-green  for  four,  six,  or  eight  days,  ac- 
cording as  the  routine  of  business  calls  for  the  return  of  the 
cloth,  in  order  to  undergo  further  operations. 

A  parcel  of  goods  consists  of  360  pieces  of  those  linens 
which  are  called  Britannias.  Each  piece  is  35  yards  long ; 
and  they  weigh,  on  an  average,  10  lbs.  each :  the  weight  of 
the  parcel  is,  in  consequence,  about  3600  lbs.  avoirdupois 
weight.  The  linens  are  first  washed,  and  then  steeped  in 
waste  alkaline  ley,  after  which  they  undergo  the  following 
operations : — 

1st,    Bucked  with  60  lbs.  pearl-ashes,  washed,  exposed  on  the  field. 


2d, 

Ditto 

80 

ditto 

ditto 

ditto 

3d, 

Ditto 

90 

potashes 

ditto 

ditto 

4th, 

Ditto 

80 

ditto 

ditto 

ditto 

5th, 

Ditto 

80 

pearl-ashes 

ditto 

ditto 

6th, 

Ditto 

50 

ditto 

ditto 

ditto 

7th, 

Ditto 

70 

ditto 

ditto 

ditto 

8th, 

Ditto 

70 

ditto 

ditto 

ditto 

9th, 

Soured  one 

night 

in  dilute  sulph 

uric  acid, 

washed. 

10th,  Bucked  with  50  lbs.  pearl-ashes,  washed,  exposed  on  the  field. 

11th,  Immersed  in  the  chloride  of  potash  or  lime  12  hours. 

12th,  Boiled  with  30  lbs.  pearl-ashes,  washed,  exposed  on  the  field. 
13th.      Ditto      30  ditto        ditto      ditto  ditto. 

14th,  Soured,  washed. 

The  linens  are  then  taken  to  the  rubbing-board,  and  well 
rubbed  with  a  strong  lather  of  black  soap,  after  which  they 
are  well  washed  in  pure  spring  water.  At  this  period  they 
are  carefully  examined,  and  those  which  are  fully  bleached 
are  laid  aside  to  be  blued,  and  made  up  for  the  market; 
while  those  which  are  not  fully  white  are  returned  to  be 


BLEACHING  OF  LINEN. 


221 


boiled,  and  steeped  in  the  chloride  of  lime  or  potash ;  then 
soured,  until  they  are  fully  white. 

By  the  above  process,  690  lbs.  weight  of  alkali  is  taken  to 
bleach  360  pieces  of  linen,  each  piece  consisting  of  35  yards 
in  length  ;  so  that  the  expenditure  of  alkali  would  be  some- 
what less  than  2  lbs.  for  each  piece,  were  it  not  that  some 
parts  of  the  linens  are  not  fully  whitened,  as  above  noted. 
Two  pounds  of  alkali  may,  therefore,  be  stated  as  the  ave- 
rage quantity  employed  for  bleaching  each  piece  of  goods. 

The  method  of  bleaching  linens  in  Ireland  is  similar  to  the 
foregoing;  any  alteration  in  the  process  depends  upon  the 
judgment  of  the  bleacher  in  increasing  or  diminishing  the 
quantity  of  alkali  used.  But  it  is  common,  at  most  bleach- 
fields,  to  steep  the  linens  in  the  chloride  of  lime  or  potash  at 
an  early  stage  of  the  process,  or  after  the  goods  have  under- 
gone the  fifth  or  sixth  operation  of  bucking.  By  this  means 
those  parts  of  the  flax  which  are  most  difficult  to  bleach  are 
jnore  easily  acted  upon  by  the  alkali ;  and,  as  before  noticed, 
souring  early  in  very  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  assists  greatly  in 
forwarding  the  whitening  of  the  linens.  Mr.  Grimshaw, 
calico-printer,  near  Belfast,  was  the  first  who  recommended 
early  souring,  which  has  since  been  very  generally  adopted. 

Mr.  Richard  Simpson  of  the  Strand,  London,  obtained  a 
patent  in  July,  1845,  for  an  improved  method  of  bleaching 
linen,  yarns,  and  fabrics.  These  improvements  consist  in  the 
employment  of  certain  solvents,  by  which  the  yarns  or  fabrics 
of  linen  are  to  be  prepared  for  bleaching,  before  the  ordinary 
means  or  processes  of  bleaching  are  resorted  to.  These  sol- 
vents are  to  be  applied  to  the  yarns  or  fabrics  of  linen  in  a 
preparatory  process  of  boiling,  prior  to  the  goods  being  im- 
mersed in  the  ordinary  bleaching  materials. 

The  solvents  to  be  employed  are  either  simple  acids,  fol- 
lowed by  solutions  of  soda-ash,  or  acids  combined  with 
soda-ash,  in  which  the  yarns  or  fabrics  of  linen  are  to  be 
boiled  for  a  space  of  time  to  be  regulated  according  to  cir- 
cumstances, and  the  application  may  be  varied  according  to 
the  character  or  condition  of  the  material  to  be  acted  upon. 

A  composition  of  solvents  which  has  been  found  to  an- 


222 


DYEING,  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


swer  for  this  purpose,  is  made  by  22  lbs.  of  sulphuric  acid  of 
the  first  quality  and  strength,  diluted  in  50  gallons  of  pure 
water,  which  are  to  be  boiled  together  in  a  leaden  vessel,  and, 
whilst  boiling,  1  cwt.  of  the  best  soda-ash  is  to  be  introduced 
into  the  liquor,  by  small  quantities  at  a  time.  The  efferves 
cence  having  ceased,  the  mixture  must  be  kept  boiling  until 
the  soda-ash  is  quite  dissolved ;  and  then,  the  sediment  hav- 
ing been  allowed  to  subside,  the  liquor  may  be  drawn  off 
quite  clear,  in  which  state  it  will  be  fit  for  use  ;  but,  if  de- 
sired, the  liquor  may  be  evaporated,  and  its  essential  proper- 
ties crystalized  into  the  state  of  salt. 

When  the  solvent  material  is  prepared  for  acting  upon 
cloth  or  particular  kinds  of  yarns,  it  may  be  desirable  to  ren- 
der it  caustic,  which  is  done  by  adding  to  the  above  com- 
pound about  half  a  hundred  weight  of  lime,  and  an  equal 
quantity  of  potash. 

As  cloths  and  yarns  vary  in  quality,  the  patentee  has 
thought  it  desirable  to  describe  two  or  three  ways  (which 
have  been  found  successful)  of  applying  this  material.  First : 
for  10  cwt.  of  yarns,  take  20  gallons  of  the  prepared  solvent 
liquor,  and  boil  it  in  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water ;  when 
cold,  throw  in  the  yarns,  and  allow  them  to  steep  in  the  li- 
quor for  about  twelve  hours;  then,  after  washing  in  clean 
water  and  squeezing  the  yarns,  throw  them  into  a  tub  of 
sours,  prepared  with  about  2  parts  of  vitriol  to  98  of  water  ; 
let  the  yarns  remain  5  or  6  hours  in  this  solution,  and  then 
wash  them  in  pure  water  and  squeeze  them,  when  the  yarns 
will  be  ready  for  the  usual  process  of  bleaching.  Second : 
for  10  cwt.  yarns,  take  20  gallons  of  the  prepared  liquor ; 
throw  in  the  yarns,  and  boil  them  in  it  for  2  or  3  hours ; 
then  wash  and  squeeze,  and  proceed  with  the  sours  as  usual. 
Third :  when  the  yarn  is  very  inferior  in  quality,  after  sub- 
mitting it  to  the  first  described  process,  boil  it  for  two  hours 
in  a  weak  solution  of  soda-ash  with  a  sufficient  quantity 
of  water.  Fourth:  instead  of  using  the  prepared  liquor, 
steep  the  yarns  for  five  hours  in  warm  water  (at  about  68° 
Fahr.),  in  which  water  about  two  parts,  by  measure,  of  vit- 
riol, to  98  of  water  has  been  previously  mixed ;  then  wash, 


BLEACHING  OF  LINEN. 


223 


squeeze,  and  afterwards  boil  them  for  two  hours  in  a  weak 
solution  of  soda-ash.  Fifth :  for  cloth  and  other  fabrics,  the 
caustic  preparation  may  be  desirable  in  which  lime  has  been 
incorporated  as  above  described. 

With  these  instructions  it  is  considered  that  an  experienced 
bleacher  will  be  enabled  to  vary  the  proportions  of  materials, 
and  the  time  of  boiling,  according  to  circumstances  arising 
out  of  the  quality  of  the  goods  to  be  operated  upon. 

In  the  preparation  of  cloths  for  bleaching,  a  mechanical 
contrivance  may  be  desirable,  by.  which  the  cloths  may  be 
conducted  by  a  series  of  small  rollers,  set  in  a  pan  or  trough, 
filled  with  the  caustic  liquor  above  described,  kept  constantly 
boiling.  Upon  the  machine  a  pair  of  squeezing-rollers  should 
be  mounted,  between  which  the  cloth  may  be  made  to  pass,- 
and  then  enter  a  second  pan  or  vat,  and  in  like  manner  be 
conducted,  by  a  series  of  rollers,  through  a  solution  of  soda- 
ash,  kept  boiling  ;  and  after  again  being  squeezed  by  rollers, 
the  cloth  may  be  wound  upon  a  portable  beam-roller,  ready 
to  be  taken  to  the  bleaching  apparatus. 

The  patentee  does  not,  however,  consider  any  of  these  ma- 
chines to  be  new,  but  limits  his  claim  of  invention  to  the  pro- 
cesses of  preparing  yarns  and  fabrics  of  linen  for  bleaching, 
as  above  described. 


CHAPTER  III. 


SILK. 

Cleansing  the  Silk  from  Gum — Actjon  of  Alkalies  on  Silk— Of  Soap — Old  methods 
of  Scouring — China-white — Azure-white,  and  Thread-white — Sulphuring — 
Azuring — Gum  of  Silk — Erroneous  opinions  of  Authors  respecting  it — Obser- 
vations on  Dyeing  Silk — Best  method  of  Scouring — Influence  of  Light — 
Bleaching  by  Steam. 

Silk  in  its  raw  state,  as  spun  by  the  worm,  is  either  white 
or  yellow  of  various  shades,  and  is  covered  with  a  varnish, 
which  gives  it  stiffness  and  a  degree  of  elasticity.  For  the 
greater  number  of  purposes  to  which  silk  is  applied,  it  must 
be  deprived  of  this  native  covering,  which  was  long  consid- 
ered to  be  a  sort  of  gum.  The  operation  by  which  this  color- 
ing matter  is  removed  is  called  scouring,  cleansing  or  boiling. 
A  great  many  different  processes  have  been  proposed  for  free- 
ing the  silk  fibres  from  all  foreign  impurities,  and  for  giving  it 
the  utmost  whiteness,  lustre,  and  pliancy ;  but  none  of  the 
new  plans  has  superseded,  with  any  advantage,  the  one  prac- 
tised of  old,  which  consists  essentially  in  steeping  the  silk  in 
a  warm  solution  of  soap :  a  circumstance  placed  beyond  all 
doubt  by  the  interesting  experiments  of  M.  Roard.  The 
alkalies,  or  alkaline  salts,  act  in  a  marked  manner  upon  the 
varnish  of  silk,  and  effect  its  complete  solution  ;  the  prolong- 
ed agency  of  boiling  water,  alone  answers  the  same  purpose ; 
but  nothing  agrees  so  well  with  the  nature  of  silk,  and  pre- 
serves its  brilliancy  and  suppleness  so  perfectly,  as  a  rapid 
boil  with  soap-water.  It  would  appear,  however,  that  the 
Chinese  do  not  employ  this  method,  but  something  that  is 
preferable.  Probably  the  superior  beauty  of  their  white  silk 
may  be  owing  to  the  superiority  of  the  raw  material. 

The  most  ancient  method  of  scouring  silk  consists  of  three 


BLEACHING  OF  SILK. 


225 


operations.  For  the  first,  or  the  ungumming,  thirty  per 
cent,  of  soap  is  first  of  all  dissolved  in  clean  river  water  by 
boiling  heat ;  then  the  temperature  is  lowered  by  the  addition 
of  a  little  cold  water,  by  withdrawing  the  fire,  or  at  least  by 
damping  it.  The  hanks  of  silk,  suspended  upon  horizontal 
poles  over  the  boiler,  are  now  plunged  into  the  soapy  solution, 
kept  at  a  heat  somewhat  under  ebullition,  which  is  an  essen- 
tial point ;  for  if  hotter,  the  soap  would  attack  the  substance 
of  the  silk,  and  not  only  dissolve  a  portion  of  it,  but  deprive 
the  whole  of  its  lustre.  The  portions  of  the  hanks  plunged 
in  the  bath  get  scoured  by  degrees  ;  the  varnish  and  the  color- 
ing matter  come  away,  and  the  silk  assumes  its  proper  white- 
ness and  pliancy.  Whenever  this  point  is  attained,  the 
hanks  are  turned  round  upon  the  poles,  so  that  the  portion 
formerly  in  the  air  may  be  also  subjected  to  the  bath.  As 
soon  as  the  whole  is  completely  ungummed,  they  are  taken 
out,  wrung  by  the  peg,  and  well  shaken  ;  after  which,  the 
next  step,  called  the  boil,  is  commenced.  Into  bags  of  coarse 
canvass,  called  pockets,  about  25  lbs.  or  35  lbs.  of  ungummed 
silk  are  enclosed,  and  put  into  a  similar  bath  with  the  preced 
ing,  but  with  a  smaller  proportion  of  soap,  which  may  there 
fore  be  raised  to  the  boiling  point  without  any  danger  of  de- 
stroying the  silk.  The  ebullition  is  to  be  kept  up  for  an 
hour  and  a  half,  during  which  time  the  bags  must  be  fre- 
quently stirred,  lest  those  near  the  bottom  should  suffer  an 
undue  degree  of  heat.  The  silk  experiences  in  these  two 
operations  a  loss  of  about  25  per  cent,  of  its  weight. 

The  third  and  last  scouring  operation  is  intended  to  give 
the  silk  a  slight  tinge,  which  renders  the  white  more  agree- 
able, and  better  adapted  to  its  various  uses  in  trade.  In  this 
way  we  distinguish  the  China-white,  which  has  a  faint  cast 
of  red,  the  silver-white,  the  azure-white,  and  the  thread- 
white.  To  produce  these  different  shades,  we  begin  by  pre- 
paring a  soap-water  so  strong  as  to  lather  by  agitation  ;  we 
then  add  to  it,  for  the  China-white,  a  little  annotta,  mixing  it 
carefully  in ;  and  then  passing  the  silk  properly  through  it, 
till  it  has  acquired  the  wished-for  tint.  As  to  the  other 
shades,  we  need  only  azure  them  more  or  less  with  a  fine  in- 

29 


226 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


digo,  which  has  been  previously  washed  several  times  in  hot 
water,  and  reduced  to  powder  in  a  mortar.  It  is  then  diffused 
through  boiling  water,  allowed  to  settle  for  a  few  minutes, 
and  the  supernatant  liquid,  which  contains  only  the  finer  par- 
ticles, is  added  to  the  soap  bath  in  such  proportion  as  may  be 
requisite.  The  silk,  on  being  taken  out  of  this  bath  must  be 
wrung  well,  and  stretched  upon  poles  to  dry ;  after  which 
it  is  introduced  into  the  sulphuring  chamber,  if  it  is  to  be 
made  use  of  in  the  white  state.  At  Lyons,  however,  no  soap 
is  employed  at  the  third  operation :  after  the  boil,  the  silk  is 
washed,  sulphured,  and  azured,  by  passing  through  very  clear 
river  water  properly  blued. 

The  silks  intended  for  the  manufacture  of  blonds  and 
gauzes  are  not  subjected  to  the  ordinary  scouring  process, 
because  it  is  essential,  in  these  cases,  for  them  to  preserve 
their  natural  stiffness.  We  must  therefore  select  the  raw 
silk  of  China,  or  the  whitest  raw  silks  of  other  countries ; 
steep  them,  rinse  them  in  a  bath  of  pure  water,  or  in  one 
containing  a  little  soap  ;  wring  them,  expose  them  to  the  va- 
por of  sulphur,  and  then  pass  them  through  the  azure  wa- 
ter.   Sometimes  this  process  is  repeated. 

Before  the  memoir  of  M.  Roard  appeared,  extremely  vague 
ideas  were  entertained  about  the  composition  of  the  native 
varnish  of  silk.  He  has  shown  that  this  substance,  so  far 
from  being  of  a  gummy  nature,  as  has  been  believed,  may 
be  rather  compared  to  bees'  wax,  with  a  species  of  oil,  and 
a  coloring  matter,  which  exists  only  in  raw  silks.  It  is  con- 
tained in  them  to  the  amount  of  from  23  to  24  per  cent., 
and  forms  the  portion  of  weight  which  is  lost  in  the  ungum- 
ming.  It  possesses,  however,  some  of  the  properties  of  veg- 
etable gums,  though  it  differs  essentially  as  to  others.  In  a 
dry  mass,  it  is  friable  and  has  a  vitreous  fracture  ;  it  is  solu- 
ble in  water,  and  affords  a  solution  which  lathers  like  soap ; 
but  when  thrown  upon  burning  coals,  it  does  not  soften  like 
gum,  but  burns  with  the  exhalation  of  a  fetid  odor.  Its  so- 
lution, when  left  exposed  to  the  open  air,  at  first  of  a  golden 
yellow,  becomes  soon  greenish,  and  ere  long  putrefies,  as  a 
solution  of  animal  matter  would  do  in  similar  circumstances. 


BLEACHING  OF  SILK. 


227 


M.  Roard  assures  us  that  the  city  of  Lyons  alone  could  fur- 
nish several  thousand  quintals  of  this  substance  per  annum. 
were  it  applicable  to  any  useful  purpose. 

The  yellow  varnish  is  of  a  resinous  nature,  altogether  insol- 
uble in  water,  very  soluble  in  alcohol,  and  contains  a  little 
volatile  oil,  which  gives  it  a  rank  smell.  The  color  of  this 
resin  is  easily  dissipated,  either  by  exposure  to  the  sun  or  by 
the  action  of  chlorine  :  it  forms  about  one  fifty-fifth  of  its 
weight. 

Bees'  wax  exists  also  in  all  the  sorts  of  silk,  even  in  that 
of  China  ;  but  the  whiter  the  filaments  the  less  wax  do  they 
contain. 

M.  Roard  has  observed  that,  if  the  silk  be  exposed  to  the 
soap  baths  for  some  time  after  it  has  been  stripped  of  its 
foreign  matters,  it  begins  to  lose  body,  and  has  its  valuable 
qualities  impaired.  It  becomes  dull,  stiff,  and  colored  in  con- 
sequence of  the  solution,  more  or  less  considerable,  of  its  sub- 
stance ;  a  solution  which  takes  place  in  all  liquids,  and  even 
in  boiling  water.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  silks  cannot  be 
alumed  with  heat ;  and  that  they  lose  some  of  their  lustre  in 
being  dyed  brown,  a  color  which  requires  a  boiling  hot  bath. 
The  best  mode,  therefore,  of  avoiding  these  inconveniences,  is 
to  boil  the  silks  in  the  soap  bath  no  longer  than  is  absolutely 
necessary  for  the  scouring  process,  and  to  expose  them  in  the 
various  dyeing  operations  to  as  moderate  temperature  as  may 
be  requisite  to  communicate  the  color.  When  silks  are  to  be 
dyed,  much  less  soap  should  be  used  in  the  cleansing,  and 
very  little  for  the  dark  colors.  According  to  M.  Roard,  raw 
silks,  white  or  yellow,  may  be  completely  scoured  in  one  hour, 
with  15  lbs.  of  water  for  one  of  silk,  and  a  suitable  proportion 
of  soap.  The  soap  and  the  silk  should  be  put  into  the  bath 
half  an  hour  before  its  ebullition,  and  the  latter  should  be 
turned  about  frequently.  The  dull  silks,  in  which  the  var- 
nish has  already  undergone  some  alteration,  never  acquire  a 
fine  white  until  they  are  exposed  to  sulphurous  acid  gas. 
Exposure  to  light  has  also  a  very  good  effect  in  whitening 
silks,  and  is  had  recourse  to,  it  is  said,  with  advantage  by  the 
Chinese. 


228 


i 

DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Carbonate  of  soda  has  been  proposed  to  be  used  instead 
of  soap  in  scouring  silk,  but  it  has  never  come  into  use. 
The  Abbe  Collomb,  in  1785,  scoured  silk  by  eight  hours' 
boiling  in  simple  water,  and  he  found  the  silks  bleached 
in  this  way  to  be  stronger  than  by  soap,  but  they  are 
not  near  so  white.  A  patent  has  been  taken  out  in 
England,  by  Mr.  Samuel  Brierely,  of  Salford,  Lancashire, 
for  bleaching  them  by  steam.  The  mode  of  operating, 
which  we  give  in  the  patentee's  own  words,  is  as  fol- 
lows : — 

"  The  raw  silk  is  first  soaked  in  lukewarm  soap-water,  in  a  tub,  for  a  sufficient 
space  of  time  to  soften  the  gum.  After  this  the  silk  is  to  be  taken  in  hanks  (while 
wet)  and  hung  on  poles  within  a  wooden  chest,  box,  or  closet,  and,  when  closed, 
steam  is  to  be  admitted  by  means  of  a  pipe  leading  from  a  boiler,  the  apparatus 
being  furnished  with  safety  valves,  stopcock,  and  a  cock  for  drawing  off  the  con- 
densed steam." 

Dr.  Ure  says,  that  "  the  silk  is  exposed  to  the  action 
of  the  steam  for  ten  minutes  only."  The  silk,  however, 
should  be  allowed  to  remain  a  sufficient  time  to  dissolve 
the  gum,  when  it  is  to  be  washed  in  a  weak  solution  of 
soap  and  water ;  and  lastly,  in  clean  water,  until  the  im- 
purities be  entirely  removed.  This  steaming  process  is, 
according  to  Dr.  Ure,  very  generally  practised  by  the  Eng- 
lish throwsters.* 

It  appears  that  the  Chinese  do  not  use  soap  in  producing 
those  fine  white  silks  which  are  imported  into  Europe.  Mi- 
chel de  Grubbens,  who  resided  long  at  Canton,  saw  and  prac- 
tised himself  the  operation  there,  which  he  published  in  the 
Memoirs  of  the  Academy  of  Stockholm  in  1803.  It  consists 
in  preparing  the  silk  with  a  species  of  white  beans,  smaller 
than  the  Turkey  beans,  with  some  wheat  flour,  common  salt, 
and  water.    The  proportions  are  5  parts  of  beans,  5  of  salt,  6 


*  According  to  Parnell,  the  only  operations  to  which  silk  cloth  is  subjected 
preparatory  to  being  printed,  are,  "1,  boiling  in  a  solution  of  soap  and 
soda  to  remove  the  '  gum ;'  2,  passing  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid  ;  and 
3,  washing  and  drying;"  but  this  should  not  be  done  upon  goods  that  are 
to  be  dyed. 


BLEACHING  OF  SILK. 


229 


of  flour,  and  25  of  water,  to  form  this  vegetable  bath.  The 
beans  must  be  previously  washed.  It  is  difficult  to  discovei 
what  chemical  action  can  occur  between  this  decoction  and 
the  varnish  of  raw  silk ;  possibly  some  acid  may  be  developed, 
which  may  soften  the  gummy  matter,  and  facilitate  its  sepa 
ration. 


CHAPTER  IV, 

WOOL. 

Yolk  of  Wool — Its  nature — Methods  of  discharging  the  Yolk — Care  to  be  observed 
in  Scouring  Wool — Hirst  and  Newton's  Patent  Processes — Sulphuring — Mode 
of  operating — Fraudulent  Practices — Removing  harshness  from  the  Wool  after 
Sulphuring — Bleaching  Mousselaine-de-laines — Hebert's  Improved  Machine  for 
Fulling  Cloth. 

Wool,  like  silk,  is  covered  with  a  peculiar  varnish,  which 
impairs  its  qualities,  and  prevents  it  from  being  employed  in 
the  raw  state  for  the  purposes  to  which  it  is  well  adapted 
when  it  is  scoured.  The  English  give  the  name  yolk,  and 
the  French  suint,  to  that  native  coat :  it  is  a  fatty  unctuous 
matter,  of  a  strong  smell,  which  apparently  has  its  chief 
origin  in  the  cutaneous  perspiration  of  the  sheep ;  but  which, 
by  the  agency  of  external  bodies,  may  have  undergone  some 
changes  which  modify  its  constitution.  It  results  from  the 
experiments  of  M.  Vauquelin,  that  the  yolk  is  composed  of 
several  substances ;  namely,  1,  a  soap  with  basis  of  potash, 
which  constitutes  the  greater  part  of  it ;  2,  of  a  notable  quan- 
tity of  acetate  of  potash ;  3,  of  a  small  quantity  of  carbonate, 
and  a  trace  of  muriate  of  potash ;  4,  of  a  little  lime  in  an  un- 
known state  of  combination ;  5,  of  a  species  of  sebaceous 
matter,  and  an  animal  substance  to  which  the  odor  is  due. 
There  are  several  other  accidental  matters  present  in  sheep's 
wool. 

The  proportion  of  yolk  is  variable  in  different  kinds  of 
wool,  but  in  general  it  is  more  abundant  the  finer  the  staple  ; 
the  loss  by  scouring  being  45  per  cent,  for  the  finest  wools, 
and  35  per  cent,  for  the  coarse. 

The  yolk,  on  account  of  its  soapy  nature,  dissolves  readily 
in  water,  with  the  exception  of  a  little  free  fatty  matter, 
which  easily  separates  from  the  filaments,  and  remains  float- 


BLEACHING  OF  WOOL. 


231 


ing  in  the  liquor.  It  would  thence  appear  sufficient  to  ex- 
pose the  wools  to  simple  washing  in  a  stream  of  water ;  yet 
experience  shows  that  this  method  never  answers  so  well  as 
that  usually  adopted,  which  consists  in  steeping  the  wool  for 
some  time  in  simple  warm  water,  or  in  warm  water  mixed 
with  a  fourth  of  stale  urine.  From  15  to  20  minutes  of  con- 
tact are  sufficient  in  this  case,  if  we  heat  the  bath  as  warm 
as  the  hand  can  bear  it,  and  stir  it  well  with  a  rod.  At  the 
end  of  this  time  the  wool  may  be  taken  out,  set  to  drain, 
then  placed  in  large  baskets,  in  order  to  be  completely  rinsed 
in  a  stream  of  water. 

It  is  generally  supposed  that  putrid  urine  acts  on  the  wool 
by  the  ammonia  which  it  contains,  and  that  this  serves  to 
saponify  the  remainder  of  the  fatty  matter  not  combined  with 
the  potash.  M.  Vauquelin  is  not  of  this  opinion,  because  he 
found  that  wool  steeped  in  water,  with  sal  ammoniac  and 
quick  lime,  is  not  better  scoured  than  an  equal  quantity  of 
wool  treated  with  mere  water.  He  was  hence  led  to  con- 
clude that  the  good  effects  of  putrified  urine  might  be  as- 
cribed to  anything  else  besides  the  ammonia,  and  probably  to 
the  urea.  Fresh  urine  contains  a  free  acid,  which,  by  de- 
composing the  potash  soap  of  the  yolk,  counteracts  the  scour- 
ing operation.* 

If  wools  are  better  scoured  in  a  small  quantity  of  water 
than  in  a  great  stream,  we  can  conceive  that  this  circum 


*  Mr.  Samuel  Hirst,  of  Batley,  recommends  the  following  method  of  scouring 
wool,  and  for  which  he  obtained  a  patent  in  March,  1829 : — "  A  large  cistern  being 
procured  and  filled  with  human  urine,  the  latter  is  allowed  to  stand  in  it  for  about 
six  weeks,  in  order  to  produce  fermentation;  when  this  has  thoroughly  taken 
place,  about  four  hundred  gallons  of  the  fermented  urine  is  to  be  transferred  to 
an  iron  still,  with  a  block-tin  worm  passing  through  a  refrigerator,  of  the  usual 
construction;  to  this  is  to  be  added  one  pound  of  tallow,  prepared  from  beef  suet, 
for  the  purpose  of  preventing  the  froth  that  would  otherwise  arise  in  ebullition. 
This  mixture  is  to  be  distilled,  and  whilst  in  operation  about  six  gallons  of  the 
aqua  ammonia  thus  produced,  are  to  be  drawn  off  into  a  cask,  adding  six  pounds 
of  the  best  mottled  soap,  previously  dissolved."  This  will  give  it  an  opaque  ap- 
pearance, and  produces,  as  the  patentee  asserts,  an  excellent  saponaceous  mate- 
rial for  cleansing  and  dressing  woolens.  The  casks  should  be  bunged  up  to  ex- 
clude the  air— (See  chapter  IV.  Part  V.,  article  Scouring  or  Renovating  articles 
of  Dress,  <f«c.) 


232 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


stance  must  depend  upon  the  nature  of  the  yolk,  which,  in  a 
concentrated  solution,  acts  like  a  saponaceous  compound,  and 
thus  contributes  to  remove  the  free  fatty  particles  which 
adhere  to  the  filaments.  It  should  also  be  observed,  that  too 
long  a  continuance  of  the  wool  in  the  yolk  water,  hurts  its 
quality  very  much,  by  weakening  its  cohesion,  causing  the 
filaments  to  swell,  and  even  to  split.  It  is  said  then  to  have 
lost  its  nerve.  Another  circumstance  in  the  scouring  of  wool, 
that  should  always  be  attended  to,  is  never  to  work  the  fila- 
ments together  to  such  a  degree  as  to  occasion  their  felting ; 
but  in  agitating  we  must  merely  push  them  slowly  round  in 
the  vessel,  or  press  them  gently  under  the  feet.  Were  it  at 
all  felted,  it  would  neither  card  nor  spin  well. 

As  the  heat  of  boiling  water  is  apt  to  decompose  woolen 
fibres,  we  should  be  careful  never  to  raise  the  temperature 
of  the  scouring  bath  too  near  this  point,  nor,  in  fact,  to  ex- 
ceed 140°  F.  Some  authors  recommend  the  use  of  alkaline 
or  soapy  baths  for  scouring  wool,  but  practical  people  do  not 
deviate  from  the  method  above  described.* 

When  the  washing  is  completed,  all  the  wool  which  is  to 
be  sent  white  into  the  market,  must  be  exposed  to  the  action 
of  sulphurous  acid,  either  in  a  liquid  or  a  gaseous  state.  In 
the  latter  case,  sulphur  is  burned  in  a  close  chamber,  in  which 
the  wools  are  hung  up  or  spread  out ;  in  the  former,  the  wools 
are  plunged  into  water,  moderately  impregnated  with  the  acid. 


*  For  the  bleaching  of  mousselaine-de-laine  goods,  intended  for  printing,  Mr. 
Parnell  recommends  to  proceed  as  follows: — "The  goods  are  first  passed  two  or 
three  times  through  a  solution  of  soap  and  soda,  at  about  the  temperature  130° 
Fahr.,  and  there  exposed  for  several  hours  to  the  action  of  sulphurous  acid  gas," 
as  already  described.  The  goods  are  next  passed  through  a  very  weak  solution 
of  caustic  soda,  dried,  and  usually  impregnated  with  a  dilute  solution  of  tin,  which 
imparts  considerable  brilliancy  to  the  colors  afterward  applied  to  the  goods.  For 
this  purpose,  de-laines  (which  are  formed  of  cotton  and  wool)  are  impregnated 
with  two  different  solutions  of  tin  consecutively,  one  intended  to  afford  oxide  of 
tin  to  the  wool;  the  other  to  the  cotton.  The  solution  first  applied  is  a  mixture  of 
perchloride  of  tin  and  muriatic  acid,  for  the  wool ;  the  other  is  stannate  of  potash 
(a  solution  of  oxide  of  tin  in  caustic  potash),  from  which  oxide  of  tin  is  precipi- 
tated on  the  cotton  by  passing  the  piece  afterward  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid. 
For  the  finer  work,  the  sulphuring  of  de-laines  is  usually  performed  twice." — Ap- 
plied Chemistry,  p.  172. 


BLEACHING  OF  WOOL. 


233 


Sulphu ring-rooms  are  sometimes  constructed  upon  a  great 
scale,  in  which  blankets,  shawls,  and  woolen  clothes  may  be 
suspended  freely  upon  poles  or  cords.  The  floor  should  be 
flagged  with  a  sloping  pavement,  to  favor  the  drainage  of  the 
water  that  drops  down  from  the  moistened  cloth.  The  iron 
or  stoneware  vessels,  in  which  the  sulphur  is  burned,  are  set 
in  the  corners  of  the  apartment.  They  should  be  increased 
in  number  according  to  the  dimensions  of  the  place,  and  dis- 
tributed uniformly  over  it.  The  windows  and  the  entrance 
door  must  be  made  to  shut  hermetically  close.  In  the  lower 
part  of  the  door  there  should  be  a  small  opening,  with  a 
sliding  shutter,  which  may  be  raised  or  lowered  by  the  mech- 
anism of  a  cord  passing  over  a  pulley. 

The  aperture  by  which  the  sulphurous  acid  and  azotic 
gases  are  let  off,  in  order  to  carry  on  the  combustion,  should 
be  somewhat  larger  than  the  opening  at  the  bottom.  A 
lofty  chimney  carries  the  noxious  gases  above  the  building, 
and  diffuses  them  over  a  wide  space,  their  ascension  being 
promoted  by  means  of  a  draught-pipe  of  iron,  connected  with 
an  ordinary  stove,  provided  with  a  valve  to  close  its  orifice 
when  not  kindled. 

When  the  chamber  is  to  be  used,  the  goods  are  hung  up, 
and  a  small  fire  is  made  in  the  draught-stove.  The  proper 
quantity  of  sulphur  being  next  put  into  the  shallow  pans,  it  is 
kindled,  the  entrance  door  is  closed,  as  well  as  its  shutter, 
while  a  vent-hole  near  the  ground  is  opened  by  drawing  its 
cord,  which  passes  over  a  pulley.  After  a  few  minutes,  when 
the  sulphur  is  fully  kindled,  that  vent-hole  must  be  almost 
entirely  shut,  by  relaxing  the  cord ;  when  the  whole  appa- 
ratus is  to  be  let  alone  for  a  sufficient  time. 

The  object  of  the  preceding  precautions  is  to  prevent  the 
sulphurous  acid  gas  escaping  from  the  chamber  by  the  seams 
of  the  principal  doorway.  This  is  secured  by  closing  it 
imperfectly,  so  that  it  may  admit  of  the  passage  of  somewhat 
more  air  than  can  enter  by  the  upper  seams,  and  the  smallest 
quantity  of  fresh  air  that  can  support  the  combustion.  The 
velocity  of  the  current  of  air  may  be  increased  at  pleasure, 

30  " 


234 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


by  enlarging  the  under  vent-hole  a  little,  and  quickening  the 
fire  of  the  draught-stove. 

Before  opening  the  entrance-door  of  the  apartment,  for  the 
discharge  of  the  goods,  a  small  fire  must  be  lighted  in  the 
draught-furnace,  the  vent-hole  must  be  thrown  entirely  open, 
and  the  sliding  shutter  of  the  door  must  be  slid  up,  gradually 
more  and  more  every  quarter  of  an  hour,  and  finally  left 
wide  open  for  a  proper  time.  By  this  means  the  air  of  the 
chamber  will  become  soon  respirable. 

Exposure  on  the  grass  may  also  contribute  to  the  bleach- 
ing of  wool.  Some  fraudulent  dealers  are  accused  of  dipping 
wools  in  butter-milk,  or  chalk  and  water,  in  order  to  whiten 
them  and  increase  their  weight. 

Wool  is  sometimes  whitened  in  the  fleece,  and  sometimes 
in  the  state  of  yarn  ;  the  latter  affording  the  best  means  of 
operating.  It  has  been  observed  that  the  wool  cut  from  cer- 
tain parts  of  the  sheep,  especially  from  the  groins,  never 
bleaches  well. 

After  sulphuring,  the  wool  has  a  harsh  crispy  feel,  which 
may  be  removed  by  a  weak  soap  bath.  To  this  also  the 
wool  comber  has  recourse,  when  he  wishes  to  cleanse  and 
whiten  his  wools  to  the  utmost.  He  generally  uses  a  soft  or 
potash  soap,  and  after  the  wool  is  well  soaked  in  the  warm 
soap  bath,  with  gentle  pressure  he  wrings  it  well  with  the 
help  of  a  hook,  fixed  at  the  end  of  his  washing  tub,  and 
hangs  it  up  to  dry. 

Mr.  Wm.  Newton,  of  Chancery  Lane,  London,  obtained  a 
patent,  in  December,  1841,  for  an  improved  apparatus  for 
"scouring  and  dyeing  wool,  cotton,  and  other  fibrous  sub- 
stances." These  improvements  will  now  be  described. — In 
fig.  5,  a,  a,  is  a  cylindrical  vessel,  made  of  iron  or  wood,  or 
other  suitable  material,  constructed  strong  enough  to  bear  a 
pressure  of  from  one  to  two  atmospheres,  and  coated  on  the 
inside  with  some  material  not  liable  to  oxidation,  and  incapa- 
ble of  giving  out  color  or  damaging  the  goods  whilst  under 
operation  ;  6,  is  a  false  bottom,  placed  in  the  lower  part  of  the 
vessel,  and  perforated  with  holes  for  the  passage  of  the  liquor ; 
c,  is  a  cover,  closing  the  aperture,  or  man-hole,  in  the  top  of 


I 


BLEACHING  OF  WOOL. 


235 


the  vessel,  which  is  furnished  with  two  loops.  Into  these 
loops,  wedges  d,  d,  are  driven,  which,  at  their  extremities 
bear  on  the  upper  part  of  the  vessel  «,  and  thereby  hold  up 
and  make  fast  the  lid  or  cover  c,  in  contact  with  the  top  of 
the  vessel.  A  tube  e,  is 
placed  vertically  in  the 
middle  of  the  vessel,  rest- 
ing upon  the  false  bottom ; 
it  is  open  at  bottom  and 
closed  at  top,  and  is  pierc- 
ed with  holes  all  round, 
for  a  considerable  distance 
down,  in  order  to  allow  the 
liquid  to  escape,  in  radial 
directions,  into  the  goods 
packed  in  the  vessel  round 
it.  A  pipe  f,  supplies  the 
liquid  to  the  vessel  a,  by 
a  force-pump  g,  which  raises  it  from  the  reservoir  h,  ana 
forces  it  into  the  lower  part  of  the  vessel  a.  The  liquor 
in  the  reservoir  may  be  heated  to  any  given  temperature, 
in  any  convenient  manner,  if  required ;  or  the  reservoir  may 
be  an  open  boiler.  A  cock  i,  is  inserted  into  the  upper  part 
of  the  vessel,  in  order  that  the  liquid  may  be  discharged,  after 
having  passed  through  the  goods  under  operation.  A  flexible 
pipe  j,  is  to  be  attached  to  the  cock,  for  the  purpose  of  re- 
turning the  liquid  into  the  reservoir,  after  it  has  circulated 
through  the  apparatus.  In  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  a,  there 
is  a  pipe  i,  provided  with  a  cock  for  emptying  the  vessel,  after 
the  operation  is  done.  The  wool  or  other  substance  on 
which  the  cleaning  operation  is  to  be  performed,  must  be 
tightly  packed  in  the  vessel  a,  as  at  m,  m,  and  the  pump 
g*,  being  set  to  work,  the  liquor  will  be  forced  through. 
In  some  cases  it  is  more  advantageous  to  employ  a  closed 
vessel,  as  at  fig.  6,  which  represents  a  vertical  section  of  the 
vessel  a,  having  a  perforated  piston  p:  attached  to  a  cross- 
head  g,  working  within  it  by  means  of  a  screw  r.  It  may 
be  also  found,  in  some  cases,  that  the  central  pipe  presents 


Fig.  5. 


236 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Fig.  6.  Fig.  7.  too  easy  a  passage  to  the 


liquid,  which  then  does  not 
act  properly  on  the  substances 
under  operation.  This  appa- 
ratus is,  therefore,  modified  ac- 
cordingly. By  turning  the 
screw  r,  the  cross-head  and 
the  piston  are  forced  down 
upon  the  substances  to  be  ope- 
rated upon,  which  compresses 


them.    Fig.  7,  is  a  top  view  of  the  cross-head.    The  other 
parts  of  the  apparatus  are  similar  to  those  already  described ; 
viz.,/,  is  the  supply-pipe,  for  introducing  the  alkaline  or  other 
liquid  into  the  vessel  a ;      is  a  double-action  pump,  similar 
to  the  one  above  described.     The  reservoir,  containing  the 
liquid  to  be  employed,  and  which  has  not  been  represented  in 
the  drawing,  is  similar  to  that  shown  at  fig.  5 ;  i,  is  the  exit- 
pipe,  for  the  escape  of  the  liquid,  after  it  has  passed  through 
the  perforated  piston  p,  to  which  a  leather  tube  may  be 
adapted,  if  necessary,  in  order  to  conduct  the  liquid  into  the 
reservoir,  or  direct  it  into  any  other  vessel.    The  screw  r,  is 
of  a  sufficient  length  to  give  a  suitable  pressure  to  the  goods 
placed  in  the  vessels  employed,  and  may  be  turned  by  any 
convenient  means.     In  order  to  scour  wool,  packed  in  the 
vessel  a,  as  described,  in  reference  to  fig.  6,  an  alkaline  solu- 
tion, or  any  other  solution  generally  used  for  that  purpose, 
is  poured  into  the  vat.    The  pump  g,  draws  up  this  liquor, 
and  forces  it  into  the  lower  part  of  the  vessel  a,  through  the 
supply-pipe  /.    The  liquor  rises  through  the  false  bottom, 
ascends  into  the  vessel  a,  and  passes  through  the  substances 
contained  therein,  and  through  the  perforated  piston,  and 
ultimately  escapes  by  the  exit-pipe  or  cock  i.    The  same 
liquid  may  be  brought  back  by  a  pipe  or  tube  into  the  vat, 
from  whence  it  is  again  drawn,  by  means  of  the  pump,  and 
thus  a  continuous  circulation  of  the  liquor  is  produced,  and 
constantly  driven  upwards  through  the  fibres  of  the  material 
to  be  operated  upon.    The  same  process  and  the  same  appa- 
ratus is  employed  for  the  bleaching  of  cotton  yarns,  fabrics, 


BLEACHING  OP  WOOL. 


237 


or  other  fibrous  materials,  the  solution  employed  being  varied 
according  to  the  substances  operated  upon.  An  artificial 
current  is,  by  these  means,  directed  upwards,  which  con- 
stantly washes  the  fibres  of  the  wool  or  other  material,  and 
carries  away  the  greasy  and  coloring  matter  it  has  extracted, 
which,  being  constantly  driven  upwards,  cannot  enter  the 
material  again,  as  hitherto  has  been  the  case  in  the  old  mode 
of  washing ;  the  material,  thus  operated  upon,  is  rapidly  and 
most  completely  washed. 

In  the  dyeing  of  wool,  which  has  been  previously  scoured 
and  washed,  the  same  apparatus  is  used,  only  instead  of  an 
alkaline  solution,  a  coloring  bath,  of  the  required  strength, 
must  be  employed.  This  bath  is  to  be  heated  in  any  con- 
venient manner,  either  by  steam  or  the  naked  fire.  When  the 
wool  has  been  washed,  as  described,  it  is  to  be  placed  in  the 
apparatus,  fig.  6,  and  the  screw  r,  turned,  so  as  to  press  the 
piston  tightly  down  upon  the  material;  when,  by  means  of 
the  pump,  the  coloring  solution  is  made  to  pass  again  and 
again  through  the  wool  under  operation,  until  it  has  become 
completely  saturated  with  the  coloring  matter.  The  dis- 
charging-pipe  may  then  be  opened,  and  the  wool,  completely 
dyed,  may  be  removed  from  the  apparatus.  Those  colors 
which  require  that  the  wool  should  be  previously  saturated 
with  a  chemical  agent,  may  be  operated  upon  by  the  agent 
being  introduced  into  the  apparatus  in  the  same  manner ;  and 
wnen  this  operation  is  finished,  the  coloring  solution  may  be 
injected,  as  before  stated,  and  continued  passing  through  the 
material,  as  long  as  may  be  necessary,  until  the  operation  is 
completed. 

Mr.  Luke  Hebert,  of  Birmingham,  obtained  a  patent  in 
September,  1841,  "for  an  improved  machine  for  fulling  cloth." 
The  advantages  of  this  machine  consist,  Firstly, — in  the 
form  and  manner  of  applying  the  cylinders  for  fulling  cloth, 
in  the  direction  of  its  breadth,  with  a  view  to  avoid  the  incon 
veniences  which  arise  when  pairs  of  upper  and  lower  cylin 
ders  are  employed  for  that  purpose.  Secondly, — in  arrange 
ments  to  insure  the  parallelism  of  the  axis  of  the  preparing- 
rollers.   Thirdlv. — in  the  form  and  construction  of  the  trough, 


238 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


in  which  the  cloth  is  fulled,  in  the  direction  of  its  length. 
Fourthly, — in  arrangements  for  combining  fulling  by  pressure, 
with  fulling  by  percussion.  Fifthly, — in  the  substitution  of 
other  materials  for  wood  or  metal,  in  the  construction  of  cer- 


turns  in  plummer-blocks,  supported  by  the  frame-work.  Upon 
this  shaft  is  fixed  a  wheel  d,  which  is  driven  by  a  pinion 
e,  fixed  on  the  driving-shaft  of  the  machine.  Affixed  to  the 
sides  of  the  cylinder  a,  are  copper  flanges,  which,  with  the 
periphery  of  the  cylinder,  form  a  deep  groove  or  channel ;  and 
into  this  channel  the  cloth  is  received  and  conducted  under 
three  small  cylinders  c,  c,  c1,  in  succession ;  which,  by  their 
pressure,  effect  the  fulling  of  the  cloth  laterally.  The  shafts 
of  these  cylinders  turn  in  bearings  a1,  on  either  side  of  the 
machine ;  the  bearings  are  formed  in  racks  a,  (fig.  8,)  the 
lower  end  of  which  slide  in  guides,  fixed  upon  the  outside  of 
the  casing,  b,  b,  are  toothed  sectors,  gearing  with  the  racks 
a,  a  ;  and  b1,  are  levers,  fixed  to  their  respective  axes,  and  fit- 
ted with  moveable  weights,  for  the  purpose  of  regulating  the 
pressure  of  the  small  cylinders  upon  the  large  one. 

In  order  to  sustain  and  guide  the  upper  ends  of  the  racks 
a,  a,  small  grooved  rollers  are  furnished,  as  shown  at  fig.  8. 
Upon  the  shaft  of  the  cylinder  c1,  is  fixed  a  small  wheel  c 


Fig.  8. 


tain  parts  of  the  ma- 
chinery. Fig.  8,  is  a 
side  elevation  of  the 
machine ;  fig.  9,  a  lon- 
gitudinal section  of  the 
same ;  fig.  10,  an  oblique 
section  of  a  portion  of 
fig.  9,  with  some  modi- 
fications ;  and  fig.  11,  a 
vertical  section  of  the 
same  part,  to  give  an- 
other view  of  the  modi- 
fication, a,  is  the  great 
cylinder,  formed  of  wood 
or  copper,  and  mounted 


upon  a  shaft  b,  which 


BLEACHING    OF  WOOL. 


239 


which  is  driven  by  the  wheel  d,  and  thus  insures  the  motion 
of  the  cylinder  c1,  in  its  action  upon  the  cloth,  which,  at  this 
part,  experiences  a  greater  resistance,  owing  to  the  effect  of 
the  fulling  longitudinally,  d,  is  a  shoe-piece,  so  formed  that 
the  cloth  cannot  get  between  it  and  the  cylinder ;  its  upper 
end  (shown  by  dots  in  Fig.  9. 

fig.  9,)  detaches  the 
cloth  from  the  surface 
of  the  large  cylinder, 
and  throws  it  into  the 
trough,  in  which  it  is 
fulled  longitudinally, 
e,  is  an  upper  shoe, 
which  serves  the  same 
purpose  with  regard  to 
the  cylinder  of,  as  the 
lower  shoe  with  respect 
to  the  cylinder  a  ;  this 
shoe  e,  is,  by  means  of 
a  cross-piece,  attached 
to  arms  e*,  fitted  with  plummer-blocks,  which  turn  upon  the 
shaft  of  the  cylinder  c1,  and  thus  connect  the  cylinder  with 
the  shoe,  in  such  a  manner  that  whatever  motion  the  cylin- 
der may  receive,  the  shoe  will  still  remain  in  contact  with  it. 
The  form  and  action  of  these  shoes  may  be  best  understood 
by  reference  to  fig.  11,  which  exhibits  a  modification  of  the 
expanding  trough  or  channel.  F,  fig.  9,  is  one  of  two  grooved 
plates  or  boards,  forming  the  sides  of  the  expanding  trough ; 
these  plates  are  attached  to  the  cheek-pieces  /,  which  turn 
upon  pivots  in  the  arms  g,  of  the  bell-crank  levers  G ;  and 
the  inner  /*,  of  the  side  plates  is  retained  by  iron  rods  x1  fig. 
10,  attached  by  a  screw  to  the  side  of  the  machine.  To  the 
arms  g,  of  the  bell-crank  levers  G,  are  fastened  the  bars  h,  to 
which  the  ^weighted  cord,  passing  over  a  pulley,  is  attached ; 
and  which,  acting  upon  the  bell-crank  levers,  tends  to  close 
the  sides  of  the  expanding  trough,  and  thus  compresses  the 
cloth  in  the  trough  with  a  force  proportioned  to  the  weight 
attached  to  the  cord.    K,  is  a  board  having  a  slot  I,  in  it, 


240 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


through  which  the  cloth,  coming  from  the  cistern  or  lower 
part  of  the  machine,  is  drawn,  and  is  thereby  gathered  up. 
From  thence  the  cloth  passes  through  the  rectangular  tube  L, 
which  enables  it  to  enter  the  trough  or  channel  in  the  large 
cylinder  A,  more  readily.  The  longitudinal  aperture  of  the 
tube  L,  being  placed  so  that  its  width  shall  cross  the  breadth 
of  the  slot  Z,  in  the  board  K,  the  cloth  i,  in  its  passage  from 
K,  to  L,  is  pressed  in  different  directions,  and  the  disposition 
of  its  folds  is  thereby  changed  at  each  revolution.  V,  is  a 
roller,  which  supports  the  cloth,  at  the  proper  angle,  in  its 
passage  from  K,  to  L. 

Pig>  10.  In  figs.  10  and  11  is  shown  a 

different  mode  of  constructing  the 
sides  of  the  expanding  trough,  in 
^  lieu  of  the  grooved  planks  F  ;  the 
sides  are  composed  of  two  cast- 
iron  plates  H,  H,  in  each  of  which 
is  inserted  a  row  of  small  grooved 
Fig.  11.  vertical  cylinders  J  ;  these  cylin- 

ders are  so  arranged  that  the  pro- 
jection of  the  cylinders  in  one  row 
faces  the  recess  formed  by  the  con- 
tact of  two  cylinders  in  the  oppo- 
site row.  Figs.  12, 13, 14,  and  15, 
represent  various  modifications  of 
apparatus  for  fulling  cloth  by  per- 
cussion. In  all  these  figures  the 
cloth  is  delivered  by  the  rollers  N,  N,  into  a  trough  O. 
whence  it  passes  to  a  table  R,  where  it  is  subjected  to  the 
action  of  the  beaters  P.  The  cylinders  N,  N,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  substitutes  for  the  large  cylinder  A,  and  the  small 
cylinders  C,  C,  in  the  machine  above  described  ;  they  may 
be  made  much  wider,  and  without  flanges ;  their  use  may 
likewise  be  limited  to  simply  drawing  forward  the  cloth. 
The  lower  cylinder  is  driven  in  the  same  manner  as  the  cy- 
linder A.  The  bottom  of  the  trough  O,  is  fixed,  but  the  top 
is  hinged,  and  is  kept  down  by  a  weight  attached  thereto,  as 
in  figs.  12,  14,  and  15,  or  by  a  spring,  as  in  fig.  13,  thus  op- 


BLEACHING  OF  WOOL.  241 

posing  the  free  exit  of  the  cloth  from  between  the  cylinders 
N,  N,  whereby  the  cloth  is  fulled  lengthwise.  The  beat- 
ers P,  may  be  made  of  various  forms,  and  put  in  motion 
by  various  means  ;  thus  in  figs.  12,  and  13,  the  beat- 
ers are  of  a  cylindrical  form,  and  each  has  its  motion 
around  its  own  axis  in  addition  to  its  motion  around  the 
common  centre  p.  In  fig.  14,  a  mallet  P,  is  set  in  motion  by 
a  cam  p  ;  and  in  fig.  8,  the  mallet  P,  is  moved  by  an  eccen- 
tric or  crank  ;  the  force  of  the  blow  may  be  regulated  by 
suspending  the  table  R  from  a  hinge,  and  giving  it  an  upward 
pressure  by  a  weight,  as  shown  in  figs.  12,  13,  and  15 :  or 
the  table  may  be  a  fixture,  and  the  force  of  the  blow  regula- 
ted by  weights,  placed  upon  the  beater,  as  in  fig.  14. 


In  fig.  16,  is  shown  another  arrangement  for  fulling  the 
cloth  in  the  direction  of  its  breadth.  A  portion  s,  s,  of  the 
top  and  bottom  of  the  trough  turns  upon  hinge-joints,  form- 
ing clap-boards,  and  is  connected  to  the  rods  t,  t ;  by  the 
motion  of  which  rods,  the  pieces  s,  s,  are  made  alternately 
to  recede  from  and  to  approach  each  other  violently ;  effect- 
ing by  the  shock  a  part  of  the  fulling  breadthwise,  as  is  done 
by  the  cylinders  before  described.  Fulling  longitudinally  is 
effected  in  this  expanding  channel  as  in  the  others.  With  a 
view  to  avoid,  on  the  one  hand,  the  evils  caused  by  rust  or 
oxidation  when  metal  is  employed  in  the  construction  of 

31 


242 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


some  parts  of  the  machine,  or,  on  the  other  hand,  those 
caused  by  alternate  expansion  and  contraction  when  wood  is 
so  employed,  the  patentee  prefers  constructing  portions  of  the 
machinery  (more  especially  the  troughs  and  cylinders)  of 
stone,  or  such  earthy  materials  as  are  susceptible  of  polish, 
such  as  granite,  marble,  glass,  porcelain,  or  earthenware. 

The  operation  of  the  machinery  is  as  follows : — The  cloth 
is  first  passed  through  the  fixed  channels,  next  between  the 
cylinders,  and  then  through  the  expanding  trough ;  after 
which  the  two  ends  are  sewed  together.  Upon  setting  the 
machine  in  motion,  the  cloth,  lying  in  the  cistern  or  bottom 
of  the  apparatus,  is  gathered  up  by  the  first  fixed  channel ; 
whence,  passing  over  the  guide-roller,  it  enters  the  second 
fixed  channel,  the  aperture  of  which,  as  before  explained,  is 
placed  in  a  different  position  from  that  in  the  first,  whereby 
not  only  is  the  cloth  arranged  so  as  to  place  itself,  with  more 
facility,  between  the  rollers,  but  at  each  time  that  the  same 
portion  of  cloth,  in  its  successive  revolutions,  passes  through 
these  channels,  the  position  of  its  folds  becomes  changed. 
From  the  second  fixed  channel  the  cloth  passes  into  the 
channel  or  groove  of  the  large  cylinder,  which,  in  its  revo- 
lution, draws  forward  the  cloth,  which,  passing  between  the 
large  cylinder  and  the  smaller  ones  placed  over  it,  is  fulled  in 
the  direction  of  its  breadth,  more  or  less,  according  to  the 
pressure  thrown  upon  the  small  cylinders  by  the  weighted 
Jevers. 

The  third  or  last  of  the  small  cylinders  (which,  as  before 
explained,  is  driven  by  a  toothed  wheel,  in  order  to  insure  its 
action,)  accumulates  the  cloth  in  the  expansive  trough,  until 
the  increase  causes  the  two  sides  to  recede  slightly,  and  thus 
partially,  and  at  intervals,  to  allow  the  cloth  to  pass  through. 
In  its  passage  through  the  expanding  trough  the  cloth 
heaped  up  and  folded  back  upon  itself,  becomes  fulled  length- 
wise. In  the  case  of  the  sides  of  the  expanding  trough 
being  formed  of  small  cylinders,  as  shown  in  figs.  10,  and 
11,  in  lieu  of  the  grooved  plates,  shown  in  the  first  arrange- 
ment, the  fulling  is  more  rapidly  and  thoroughly  effected, 
as,  instead  of  one  continued  squeeze,  each  cylinder  in  sue- 


BLEACHING  OF  WOOL.  243 

cession,  from  their  being  placed  in  "  quincunx,"  gives  the 
cloth  a  squeeze. 

In  fulling  by  percussion,  jointly  with  pressure,  the  beaters, 
contrary  to  the  action  of  the  common  beaters,  full  the  cloth, 
in  successive  portions,  as  it  comes  under  their  action,  the 
force  of  which  can  also  be  regulated,  either  by  weights  placed 
upon  the  beaters,  or  by  the  degree  of  resistance  given  to  the 
tables,  according  to  the  mode  of  construction  employed. 

Lastly,  in  fulling  by  the  cylinders  and  clap-boards,  the 
fulling,  in  each  direction,  is  effected  by  successive  violent 
approaches  of  the  clap-boards,  and  the  heaping  and  doubling 
up  of  the  cloth  between  them  by  the  action  of  the  cylinders. 


CHAPTER  V. 


Chlorimetry — Testing  weak  solutions  of  Bleaching-Powder— Testing  by  Arseni- 
ous  Acid,  or  Green  Copperas — Great  danger  of  destroying  the  Goods — Care  to 
be  taken — Improved  method  of  Testing. 

CHLORIMETRY  requires  to  be  practised  by  the  bleacher 
for  two  purposes — First,  he  has  to  learn  the  commercial 
value  of  the  bleaching-powder  which  he  purchases  ;  and 
with  that  view  he  can  scarcely  desire  anything  better  than 
the  method  either  by  arsenious  acid  or  green  copperas,  as 
already  described.  But  the  more  important,  because  the 
hourly  testing  of  his  bleaching-liquor,  and  that  on  which  the 
safety  of  his  goods  depends,  is  the  ascertaining  the  strength 
of  the  weak  solutions  in  which  the  goods  have  to  be  im- 
mersed. If  the  solution  is  too  strong,  the  fabric  is  apt  to  be 
injured.  If  too  weak,  part  of  the  goods  remain  brown, 
and  the  operation  must  be  repeated.  The  range  within 
which  cotton  is  safe  in  this  process  is  not  very  wide.  A  so- 
lution standing  1°  on  Twaddell's  hydrometer,  (spec.  grav. 
1-005,)  is  not  more  than  safe  for  such  goods,  while  that  of 
half  a  degree  is  scarcely  sufficient  for  the  first  operation  of 
stout  cloth,  unless  it  is  packed  more  loosely  than  usual. 
When  the  vessel  is  first  set  with  fresh  solution  of  bleaching- 
powder,  there  is  little  difficulty,  if  the  character  of  the  powder 
be  known ;  but  when  the  goods  are  retired  from  the  steeping 
vessels,  they  leave  a  portion  of  bleaching-liquor  behind,  un- 
exhausted, which  must  be  taken  into  account  in  restoring  the 
liquor  to  the  requisite  strength  for  the  next  parcel.  The 
ohlorimeter  must,  therefore,  be  applied  every  time  that  fresh 
goods  are  put  into  the  liquid.  It  must,  consequently,  be  in- 
trusted to  persons  who  may  not  be  expert  either  in  figures  or 
in  chemical  manipulation.  Hence  the  process  is  too  delicate 
and  tedious. 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


245 


To  obviate  these  difficulties,  Mr.  Walter  Crum,  of  Thorn- 
liebank,  near  Glasgow,  introduced,  a  short  time  ago,  the  fol- 
lowing method,  "  by  which  the  testing  is  performed  in  an 
instant?  It  depends  upon  the  depth  of  color  of  the  per- 
acetate  of  iron  : — 

A  solution  is  formed  of  proto-chloride  of  iron,  by  dissolving  cast-iron  turnings  in 
muriatic  acid,  of  half  the  usual  strength.  To  ensure  perfect  saturation,  a  large  ex- 
cess of  iron  is  kept  for  some  time  in  contact  with  the  solution  at  the  heat  of  boil- 
ing water.  One  measure  of  this  solution,  at  40°  Twaddell,  (spec.  grav.  1200,)  is 
mixed  with  one  of  acetic  acid.  That  forms  the  proof  solution.  If  mixed  with  six 
or  eight  parts  of  water,  it  is  quite  colorless ;  but  chloride  of  lime  occasions  with  it 
the  production  of  peracetate  of  iron,  which  has  a  peculiarly  intense  red  color. 

A  set  of  phials  is  procured,  12  in  number,  all  of  the  same  diameter.  A  quantity 
of  the  proof  solution,  equal  to  ^th  of  their  capacity,  is  put  into  each,  and  then  they 
are  filled  up  with  bleaching-liquor  of  various  strengths,  the  first  at  y1^  th  of  a  de- 
gree of  Twaddell,  the  second,  y^ths,the  third,  y\ths,  and  so  on  up  to  yfths,  or  1 
degree.  They  are  then  well  corked  up,  and  ranged  together,  two  and  two,  in  a 
piece  of  wood,  in  holes  drilled  to  suit  them.  We  have  thus  a  series  of  phials, 
showing  the  shades  of  color  which  those  various  solutions  are  capable  of  produ- 
cing. To  ascertain  the  strength  of  an  unknown  and  partially  exhausted  bleaching- 
liquor,  the  proof  solution  of  iron  is  put  into  a  phial  similar  to  those  in  the  instru- 
ment, up  to  a  certain  mark,  -^th  of  the  whole.  The  phial  is  then  filled  up  with 
the  unknown  bleaching-liquor,  shaken,  and  placed  beside  that  one  in  the  instru- 
ment, which  most  resembles  it.  The  number  of  that  phial  is  its  strength  in  I2ths 
of  a  degree  of  the  hydrometer;  and,  by  inspecting  the  annexed  table,  we  find  at 
once  how  much  of  a  solution  of  bleaching-powder,  which  is  always  kept  in  stock, 
at  a  uniform  strength  of  6  degrees,  is  necessary  to  raise  the  whole  of  the  liquor  in 
the  steeping  vessel  to  the  desired  strength. 


Fig.  17. 


The  instrument  is  formed  of  long  2  ounce  phials,  as  shown 
in  fig.  17,  cast  in  a  mould  ;*  those  of  blown  glass  not  being  of 
uniform  diameter.  The  outside,  which  alone  is  rough,  is 
polished  by  grinding.  They  are  placed  two  and  two,  so  that 
the  bottle  containing  the  liquid  to  be  examined  may  be  set 
by  the  side  of  any  one  in  the  series,  and  the  color  compared 


246 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


by  looking  through  the  liquid  upon  a  broad  piece  of  white 
paper  stretched  upon  a  board  behind  the  instrument. 

To  explain  the  following  table,  it  is  necessary  to  state  that 
the  steeping  vessels  employed  contain,  at  the  proper  height 
for  receiving  goods,  1440  gallons,  or  288  measures  of  5 
gallons  each, — a  measure  being  the  quantity  easily  carried 
at  a  time.  In  the  table,  0  represents  water,  and  the  num- 
bers 1,  2,  3,  &c,  are  the  strength  of  the  liquor  already  in 
the  vessel  in  12ths  of  a  degree  of  Twaddell,  as  ascertained 
by  the  chlorimeter.  If  the  vessel  has  to  be  set  anew,  we  see 
by  the  first  table  that  32  measures  of  liquor  at  6°  must  be 
added  to  (256  measures  of)  water  to  produce  288  measures 
of  liquor  at  T32  ths  of  a  degree.  But  if  the  liquor  already  in 
the  vessel  is  found  by  the  chlorimeter  to  produce  a  color 
equal  to  the  2d  phial,  then  24  measures  only  are  necessary, 
and  so  on. 


To  stand  T32° 

0  requires  32  measures. 

1  _     28  — 

2  _     24  — 

3  —     20  — 

4  —     16  — 

5  —     12  — 

6  —       8  — 

7  —       4  — 

To  stand  T%° 

0  requires  24  measures. 

1  _     20  — 

2—  16  — 

3—  12  — 

4  —       8  — 

5  —      4  — 

To  stand  Ty> 

0  requires  16  measures. 

1  —     12  — 

2  —       8  — 

3  —       4  — 

To  stand  T\° 

0  requires  12  measures. 

1  —      8  — 

2  —      4  — 

Let  us  see  what  takes  place  on  mixing  chloride  of  lime 
with  protomuriate  of  iron.  On  the  old  view  of  the  constitu- 
tion of  bleaching-powder — that  it  is  a  combination  of  chlorine 
and  lime,  we  have 


BLEACHING  OF  COTTON. 


247 


3  (CaO,  CI) )  f  3  CaCl 

6  FeCl       \  becoming  J  2  Fe2Cl3 
j  [  Fe203 

the  peroxide  of  iron  forming  peracetate  with  the  acetic  acid 
which  is  present.  Or,  supposing  with  Balard  that  when  two 
atoms  of  chlorine  unite  with  two  atoms  of  lime,  the  product  is 
CaCl-f-CaO,  CIO,  we  have  this  formula  : — 

3  CaCl        )  f  6  CaCl 

3  (CaO,  CIO)  i  becoming  \  4  Fe2Cl3 
12  FeCl        j  [2Fe203 

Here  one-third  only  of  the  iron  goes  to  form  the  deep  col- 
ored peracetate,  while  the  whole  might  be  employed  for  that 
purpose,  by  using  protoacetate  of  protochloride.  The  latter, 
however,  is  preferred,  from  the  greater  tendency  of  the  ace- 
tate to  attract  oxygen  from  the  air,  and,  consequently,  the 
greater  difficulty  of  preserving  it.  Even  with  the  chloride  it 
is  best  to  give  out  small  quantities  at  a  time,  preserving 
the  stock  in  well  closed  bottles. 


PART  THIRD. 
DYEING  PROCESSES. 


CHAPTER  ll 

OF  MORDANTS. 

Mordants — Nature  and  application  of— Scarcity  of  Mordants — Chemical  union  or 
combination  of  Mordants  with  stuffs — Near  alliance  of  Dyeing  to  the  science 
of  Chemistry — Alum — Aluminous  Mordants — Alumina,  methods  of  preparing — 
Various  qualities  of  Alum — Contamination  of— Injurious  effects  on  light 
shades — Advantage  of  substituting  Acetic  for  Sulphuric  Acid  as  its  solvent- 
Remarks  on  Dyeing — Observations  on  drying  goods  containing  Volatile  Acids 
— Precautions  to  be  observed — Dyeing  Madder  Red  for  Calico-Printing,  by 
means  of  Acetate  Alumina — Remarks  on  this  process — Dunging  and  Washing 
supposed  to  extract  the  Mordant  and  leave  the  Base — Erroneous  opinions  of 
writers  upon  this  subject — Preparation  of  the  Acetate  of  Alumina — Mistaken 
Notions  of  Dyers — Tin  Mordants — Messrs.  Greenwood,  Mercer,  and  Barnes', 
"Tin-preparing  Liquor" — Plumb-tub — Yellow  Spirits — Barwood  Red  Spirits 
— Mercer's  Assistant  Mordant  Liquor — Union  of  Cotton  with  Coloring  Matter. 

MORDANTS.* — Did  each  dye-drug  impart  its  own  color 
to  cloth,  and  did  there  exist  a  sufficient  variety  of  these  drugs 
for  the  various  shades  of  colors,  dyeing  would  be  a  very  sim- 
ple art,  as  it  would  only  be  necessary  to  dissolve  the  dye-stuff 
and  impregnate  the  goods.    But  so  far  from  this  being  the 


*  The  term  mordant  is  given  to  those  substances  which  serve  as  intermedia  be- 
tween the  coloring  parts  and  the  stuffs  which  they  dye,  either  for  facilitating  or 
modifying  their  combination.  It  is  by  mordants,  chiefly,  that  we  diversify  the 
colors,  give  them  more  brilliancy,  fix  them  on  the  stuffs,  and  render  them  more 
durable. 


MORDANTS. 


249 


case,  if  we  except  indigo,  there  is  scarcely  a  dye-stuff  that 
imparts  its  own  color  to  goods ;  nay,  the  most  part  of  the 
dye-drugs  used  have  so  weak  an  affinity  for  cotton  goods  es- 
pecially, that  they  impart  no  color  sufficiently  permanent  to 
deserve  the  name  of  a  dye.  These  circumstances  render 
dyeing  sufficiently  intricate,  and  make  it  more  dependent 
upon  science  ;  indeed,  it  is  only  by  the  nicest  arrangement  of 
a  few  chemical  laws,  that  the  dyer  is  enabled  to  turn  to  ad- 
vantage the  various  coloring  matters  of  which  he  is  in  pos- 
session. When  the  dyer  finds  that  there  is  no  affinity  be- 
tween the  goods  and  any  coloring  substance  which  is  put  into 
his  possession,  he  endeavors  to  find  a  third  substance,  which 
has  a  mutual  attraction  for  the  cloth  and  coloring  matter,  so 
that  by  combining  this  substance  with  the  cloth,  and  then 
passing  the  cloth  through  the  dyeing  solution,  the  coloring 
matter  combines  with  the  substance  which  is  upon  the  goods, 
and  constitutes  a  dye.  This  third  substance  used,  and  which 
acts  as  an  intermediate,  combining  two  inimical  bodies,  is 
termed  a  mordant  from  the  French  ?nordre,  which  signifies, 
to  bite,  from  an  idea  which  the  old  dyers  had  that  these  sub- 
stances bit  or  opened  a  passage  into  the  fibres  of  the  cloth, 
giving  access  to  the  color.  And  although  the  theory  of  their 
action  is  now  changed,  the  term  is  still  continued,  and  per- 
haps further  investigation  will  prove  the  term  most  appli- 
cable. 

All  the  mordants,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  are  found 
among  the  metallic  oxides.  It  may  be  supposed  from  this, 
that  mordants  are  very  numerous,  but  not  so,  for  besides  the 
necessity  of  their  possessing  a  two-fold  property — an  attrac- 
tion for  both  the  goods  and  the  coloring  matter — they  must 
also  have  the  property  of  forming  insoluble  combinations, 
which  property  belongs  almost  wholly  to  insoluble  bases; 
hence,  we  may  perceive  that  the  number  of  substances  pos- 
sessing all  these  properties  is  very  limited. 

The  bases  or  oxides  which  are  in  general  use,  and  which 
appear  to  succeed  best,  are  alumina,  the  oxides  of  tin,  and 
iron ;  the  first  two  are  colorless,  the  peroxide  of  the  latter  is 
a  light  brown,  and  imparts  to  white  goods  a  buff  or  nankeen 

32 


250 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


color,  which  in  many  cases  affects  to  a  considerable  extent 
the  color  of  the  cloth,  a  circumstance  which  must  also  be  at- 
tended to  by  the  dyer.  Indeed  the  principal  part  of  all  dye- 
ing operations  is  the  proper  choice  and  application  of  mor- 
dants, there  being  a  chemical  union  between  them  and  the 
coloring  matter ;  a  new  substance  is  formed,  not  only  differ- 
ing in  properties  but  differing  in  color  from  any  of  the  origin- 
als ;  consequently,  a  very  little  alteration  in  the  strength  or 
quality  of  a  mordant  gives  a  decided  alteration  in  the  shade 
of  color.  However,  it  gives  the  dyer  a  much  wider  field  for 
variety  of  shades  ;  at  the  same  time  a  less  number  of  color- 
ing substances  is  required ;  as,  for  example,  logwood  alone 
gives  no  color  to  cotton  worthy  the  name  of  a  dye ;  yet  by 
the  judicious  application  of  a  few  different  kinds  of  mordants, 
all  the  shades  from  a  French  white  to  a  violet ;  from  a  lav- 
ender to  a  purple  ;  from  a  blue  to  a  lilac ;  and  from  a  slate 
to  a  black,  are  obtained  from  this  substance.* 

Before  any  chemical  union  takes  place  between  bodies, 
they  must  not  only  be  in  contact,  but  they  must  be  reduced 
to  their  ultimate  molecules ;  hence,  mordants  that  are  insol- 
uble of  themselves  must  be  dissolved  in  some  appropriate 
menstrua  before  their  particles  can  combine  either  with  the 
goods  or  the  coloring  matter.  In  doing  this,  the  dyer  must 
attend  to  the  degree  of  affinity  between  the  solvent  and  the 
mordant,  to  determine  what  force  it  will  exert  against  the 
mordant  combining  with  the  fibres  of  the  cloth  ;  otherwise  a 
powerful  mordant  may  be  weakened  by  the  attraction  of  its 
solvent ;  as,  for  example,  common  alum,  even  though  much 
concentrated,  is  but  a  weak  mordant  for  cotton  goods,  owing 
to  the  great  attraction  between  the  sulphuric  acid  and  the 
alumina.  But  if  acetic  acid,  which  has  comparatively  a  weak 
affinity  for  the  alumina,  be  substituted  for  the  sulphuric  acid, 
it  becomes  a  very  powerful  mordant.  From  these  things 
having  to  be  attended  to,  the  dyer  has  many  beautiful  illus- 
trations of  the  relative  attraction  of  different  substances  for 


*  See  Logwood,  chapter  ITT.  Part  I. ;  see  also  Black  Dyes,  of  this  and  the  two 
following  Parts. 


MORDANTS. 


251 


each  other.  In  some  cases  the  attractions  are  so  nicely 
balanced  that  the  mordant  and  coloring  matter  may  be  kept 
mixed,  and  the  goods,  when  immersed  in  this  solution,  hav- 
ing a  kind  of  reciprocal  affinity,  only  receive  their  share  ;  do 
not  extract  the  coloring  matter  from  the  solvent,  but  the  depth 
of  color  upon  the  cloth  corresponds  with  the  color  of  the  solu- 
tion. In  other  cases  the  attraction  between  the  mordant  and 
coloring  matter  is  so  powerful  that,  if  the  least  quantity  of  the 
mordant  solution  be  upon  the  cloth  when  put  into  the  dye,  it 
seizes  the  coloring  matter  which  is  instantly  precipitated  or 
rendered  insoluble,  and,  therefore,  unfit  to  combine  with  the 
goods,  and  what  coloring  matter  may  have  combined  with 
the  cloth  before  being  all  precipitated,  will  be  uneven ;  that 
is,  the  resulting  color  will  be  light  and  dark.  From  these 
circumstances  the  reader  will  perceive  the  near  alliance  the 
art  of  dyeing  has  to  the  science  of  chemistry ;  but,  an 
individual  from  experience  may  know  these  effects,  and, 
though  ignorant  of  the  cause  may  guard  against  these  con- 
sequences ;  but  knowledge,  procured  only  by  experience,  is 
purchased  at  a  very  great  cost,  and  attended  with  many 
unpleasant  circumstances.  "When  the  solvent  of  any  mor- 
dant has  such  a  powerful  affinity  for  the  coloring  matter  as 
to  cause  it  to  precipitate  before  it  combines  with  the  cloth, 
the  goods  must  be  well  washed  from  the  mordant  solution. 
When  this  is  done,  although  the  mordant  which  is  in  combi- 
nation with  the  cloth  be  sufficient  to  extract  all  the  coloring 
matter  of  the  dyeing  solution,  the  resulting  color  is  altogether 
impassible,  being  dull  (without  beauty,)  at  the  same  time  so 
liable  to  change  with  every  circumstance,  that  it  could  not  be 
dried.  To  make  this  a  little  more  plain  we  will  detail  a  pro- 
cess. If  a  white  piece  of  cotton  be  put  through  a  dilute  solu- 
tion of  chloride  of  tin  (red  spirits,)  and  from  this  put  through 
a  weak  decoction  of  logwood,  the  coloring  matter  of  the  wood 
will  be  immediately  precipitated,  changing  its  hue  to  a  violet 
color,  very  little  of  it  combining  with  the  cloth,  and  probably 
very  unequally ;  but  if  the  piece  be  thoroughly  washed  from 
the  chloride  of  tin  previous  to  putting  into  the  logwood,  the 
coloring  matter  of  the  wood  will  combine  with  the  cloth,  or 


252 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


rather  the  metallic  base  which  is  on  the  cloth  ;  and,  provided 
the  logwood  solution  corresponds  with  the  strength  of  the 
mordant,  the  liquor  will  be  left  colorless  ;  but  the  piece  will 
be  a  light  brownish  shade.*  If  a  little  of  the  chloride  of  tin 
be  now  added  to  the  liquor,  its  effects  upon  the  logwood  will 
be  the  same  as  if  the  piece  had  been  put  into  it  without  being 
washed,  but  with  this  difference,  that  the  coloring  matter  is 
in  combination  with  the  cloth,  upon  which  it  is  not  only 
changed  to  a  violet  color,  but  is  rendered  insoluble  in  water, 
and  sufficiently  permanent  to  constitute  a  dye.  The  sub- 
stances thus  added  to  the  colored  liquor  to  change  and  fix  the 
colors  are  termed  alterants ,t  in  the  technical  language  of  the 
dyehouse  raising  ;  because  it  brightens  the  color.  Alterants 
and  mordants  are  often  spoken  of  as  two  distinct  substances  ; 
but  the  only  distinction  is  the  mode  of  applying  them.  In 
some  instances  distinct  substances  are  used.  In  the  process 
detailed  above,  a  little  alum  would  do  as  well  as  the  tin  ;  or 
if  a  particular  bluish  shade  were  wanted,  a  little  pyrolignite 
of  alumina  ;  but  in  almost  all  cases  the  mordant  may  also  be 
used  as  the  alterant.  As  to  the  preparation  of  the  mordants 
and  the  proper  choice  of  solvents  for  them,  the  manner  of 
applying  these  mordants  whether  hot  or  cold,  and  the  best 
means  of  fixing  them,  such  as  drying,  &c,  will  be  noticed 
under  their  separate  heads,  so  far  as  our  knowledge  extends. 
In  prosecution  of  this  plan  we  will  begin  with 

ALUM. — This  is  what  chemists  denominate  a  double 
salt,  being  composed  of  two  sulphates — the  sulphate  of  alu- 
mina, and  the  sulphate  of  potash.  This  salt  has  been  known, 
and  in   <^ral  use  among  dyers,  since  the  earliest  accounts 


*  Why  the  metallic  base  is  on  the  cloth  after  being  washed,  will  be  explained 
under  Tin. 

t  In  an  extended  sense,  the  term  alterant  may  be  applied  to  any  substance 
which  can  effect  a  permanent  change  in  the  color  of  a  dyed  cloth,  whatever  may 
be  its  chemical  action.  Thus,  oxalic  acid  becomes  an  alterant  when  applied  to  the 
purple  woolen  cloth  obtained  by  cochineal  with  a  mordant  of  protoxide  of  tin, 
whereby  the  purple  becomes  changed  to  scarlet;  bichromate  of  potash  may  also  be 
called  an  alterant  when  applied  to  a  piece  of  cotton  dyed  violet  with  logwood  and 
alumina,  in  order  to  change  the  violet  into  a  black. — Parnell. 


MORDANTS. 


253 


we  have  of  their  processes  ;  but  the  true  nature  of  its  compo- 
sition was  not  known  till  the  present  century.  The  alchym- 
ists  knew  that  sulphuric  acid  was  one  of  its  constituents  ;  and 
during  the  last  century,  it  was  discovered  that  the  precipitate 
which  falls  down  when  the  acid  is  neutralized  by  an  alkali, 
is  a  particular  kind  of  earth,  which  is  called  alumina*  It 
has  been  since  discovered  that  alumina  is  the  oxide  of  a 
metal  called  aluminum,  which  can  only  be  obtained  by  a 
tedious  and  somewhat  expensive  process.  Amongst  other 
peculiar  properties  of  alumina,  it  has  a  strong  attraction  for 
organic  matter,  and  withdraws  it  from  solutions  with  such 
force,  that,  if  the  purest  water  be  not  used  in  preparing  this 
substance,  it  will  be  discolored  ;  and  when  digested  in  solu- 
tions of  vegetable  coloring  matters,  provided  the  alumina  be 
in  sufficient  quantity,  it  will  carry  down  all  the  coloring  mat- 
ter from  the  liquid.  By  this  means  the  pigments  called  lakes 
are  formed  (see  chapter  III.,  Part  I.) ;  and  it  is  this  makes  it 
so  valuable  as  a  mordant.  The  fibre  of  cotton,  when  charged 
with  this  earth,  attracts  and  retains  the  same  coloring  mat- 
ters. 

Alumina  is  easily  dissolved  in  sulphuric  acid,  forming  the 
sulphate  of  alumina,  which  crystalizes  with  much  difficulty ; 
but  this  salt  has  a  strong  affinity  for  the  sulphate  of  potash ; 
so  that  when  these  two  salts  are  mixed,  or  when  a  salt  of 
potash  is  added  to  a  strong  solution  of  sulphate  of  alumina, 
they  combine,  and  form  common  alum,  which  is  easily  crys- 
talized. 

A  very  pure  alum  is  obtained  in  the  Roman  states  from 
alum  stone,  a  mineral  which  is  continually  produced  at  the 
Solfatara  near  Naples,  and  other  volcanic  districts,  by  the 


*  This  earth  is  thrown  down  as  a  white  bulky  precipitate  when  a  solution  of 
alum  is  mixed  with  an  excess  of  ammonia.  It  is  not  obtained  pure,  however,  by 
such  a  process,  but  retains  some  of  the  sulphuric  acid.  To  prepare  pure  alumina, 
the  precipitate  as  thus  obtained  may  be  redissolved  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  and 
again  precipitated  by  ammonia.  The  proper  neutral  sulphate  of  alumina  is  very 
soluble  in  water,  and  difficult  to  crystalize ;  by  the  addition  of  sulphate  of  potash, 
it  becomes  common  alum,  which  is  less  soluble,  and  very  easily  crystalized. — Par- 
nell. 


254 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


joint  action  of  sulphurous  acid  and  oxygen  upon  some  of  the 
felspathic  rocks.  This  mineral  contains  an  insoluble  sub- 
sulphate  of  alumina,  with  sulphate  of  potash ;  but  it  is  par- 
tially decomposed  by  heat;  so  that,  for  the  preparation  of 
alum,  the  mineral  is  simply  heated,  till  sulphurous  acid 
begins  to  escape.  It  is  then  treated  with  water,  by  which 
process  a  very  pure  and  excellent  alum  is  procured. 

The  alum  manufactured  in  Great  Britain  is  almost  always 
contaminated  with  sulphate  of  iron — a  substance  very  de- 
leterious to  its  use  as  a  mordant.  Iron  may  be  detected  by 
dissolving  a  little  of  the  salt  in  distilled  water,  and  adding 
a  few  drops  of  a  solution  of  red  prussiate  of  potash ;  or  boil- 
ing a  little,  with  the  addition  of  a  few  drops  of  nitric  acid, 
and  adding  yellow  prussiate  of  potash.  In  both  cases,  a  deep 
blue  color  is  produced,  if  iron  be  present.  When  the  propor- 
tion of  iron  is  considerable,  it  is  better  to  reject  the  alum 
altogether,  especially  if  there  be  any  chance  of  using  it  for 
bright  light  shades.*    We  have  often  experienced  bad  effects 


*  "  For  some  time  past  there  has  been  introduced  into  the  German  market  an 
alum  said  to  contain,  in  a  state  of  great  concentration,  the  principles  which  are 
principally  active  in  dyeing  and  printing.  This  quality,  it  is  said,  renders  its  em- 
ployment more  advantageous,  and  diminishes  considerably  the  expense  of  trans- 
portation. This  alum  has  not  the  least  resemblance  to  the  ordinary  potash  alum, 
for  it  presents  no  trace  of  crystalization,  but  is  in  flat  quadrangular  plates,  about 
an  inch  thick ;  it  is  white,  feebly  transparent,  and  dissolves  very  easily  in  water ; 
its  taste  is  sweetish,  bitter,  and  aluminous,  but  of  less  strength  than  that  of  ordin- 
ary alum.  If  pulverized  sulphate  of  potassa  is  thrown  into  a  concentrated  solu- 
tion of  this  alum,  a  crust  of  common  alum  forms  directly.  Mr.  Mohr  has  found  it« 
composition  to  be, 

Alumina  .  .  1391 
Sulphuric  acid  .  36  24 
Potassa  .  .  150 
Water         .      .  4960 

"  We  see  by  this  composition  that  the  alum  in  question  is,  properly  speaking, 
but  a  pure  sulphate  of  alumina  with  eighteen  atoms  of  water  of  crystalization.  A 
compound  mentioned  by  Berzelius  in  his  Traite  de  Chimie,  and  which  in  100 
parts  contains  48  53  water  of  crystalization.  It  is  probably  prepared  from  pipe- 
clay, calcined  and  pulverized,  and  sulphuric  acid,  not  entirely  concentrated ;  the 
mixture  is  boiled  to  dryness  in  appropriate  vessels,  by  a  strong  fire,  whence  its 
peculiar  non-crystaline  appearance.    This  new  alum  is  altogether  free  from  iron, 


MORDANTS. 


255 


from  the  use  of  such  alum  upon  light  shades  of  drab  and 
fawn  colors,  when  dyeing  to  a  particular  pattern.  Having 
obtained  the  particular  shade,  and  adding  a  little  alum  as 
raising,  the  iron  combined  with  the  sumac  upon  the  cloth, 
producing  a  color  two  or  three  shades  darker  than  required ; 
leaving  no  other  alternative  but  to  take  off  the  color,  and  dye 
anew — a  process  much  more  difficult,  and  the  color  less  bril- 
liant, than  at  first.  Alum  is  soluble  in  five  parts  of  cold 
water,  and  in  its  own  weight  of  boiling  water. 

The  alum  manufactured  from  the  alum  slate  or  shale,  as 
we  have  already  described,  is  a  very  weak  mordant  for 
cotton  goods,  owing  to  its  containing  an  excess  of  sulphuric 
acid,  which  retains  the  alumina  with  great  power ;  but  if  we 
neutralize  a  portion  of  the  acid,  so  that  no  more  will  remain 
but  what  is  necessary  to  hold  the  alumina  in  solution,  which, 
according  to  experiment,  requires  only  a  third  of  the  acid 
that  is  contained  in  common  alum ;  this  may  be  proved  by 
taking  a  quantity  of  carbonate  of  soda,  sufficient  to  neutral- 
ize the  whole  of  the  acid  contained  in  a  given  portion  of 
alum.  Divide  the  soda  solution  into  three  equal  portions, 
and  add  gradually  aluminous  solution,  stirring  all  the  time, 
two  of  these  portions.  It  will  be  found  that,  although  the 
alumina  is  at  first  precipitated,  by  keeping  up  the  agitation 
for  some  time,  the  precipitate  again  dissolves,  forming  an 
alum  containing  only  a  third  of  the  acid  of  common  alum. 
In  this  state,  alum  is  a  very  powerful  mordant  for  cotton,  as 
the  base  is  held  more  feebly  by  the  sulphuric  acid,  and  is 
readily  detached  by  the  superior  affinity  of  the  cloth  to  form 
a  mordant.  Alum  in  this  state  is  known  by  the  name  of 
cubical  or  basic  alum,  from  the  form  in  which  it  crystalizes. 
We  have  already  referred  to  Roman  alum  being  superior  to 
other  alums.     For  a  long  time,  the  dyers  considered  this 


and  replaces  the  ordinary  alum  in  all  its  uses ;  but  it  is  for  the  preparation  of  the 
mordant,  acetate  of  alumina,  that  it  offers  the  most  essential  advantage.  In  fact, 
as  it  contains  scarcely  any  sulphate  of  potassa,  one-fourth  the  quantity  of  acetate 
of  lead  is  saved  in  its  decomposition  by  that  salt,  since  the  ordinary  alum  contains 
three  atoms  of  sulphate  of  alumina  and  one  of  sulphate  of  potassa." — Franklin 
Journal 


256 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


superiority  to  be  wholly  owing  to  its  purity ;  and  it  is  only 
within  these  few  years  that  chemists  have  found  that  it  is  of 
the  same  composition  as  the  cubical  alum. 

The  most  common,  and  we  believe,  the  best,  method  of 
using  alumina  as  a  mordant,  is,  by  substituting  acetic  acid 
for  sulphuric  acid  as  its  solvent.  The  acetate  of  alumina 
has  several  advantages  over  the  sulphate : 

1.  The  acetic  acid  possesses  some  analogous  properties  with  alumina,  in  its  ac- 
tion upon  the  vegetable  coloring  matter. 

2.  It  holds  the  alumina  with  much  less  force  than  the  sulphuric,  and  conse- 
quently yields  it  much  easier  to  the  cloth. 

3.  Being  volatile,  a  great  portion  of  the  acid  flies  off  during  the  process  of 
drying. 

When  strong  colors  are  wanted,  and  the  mordant  is  of  such 
a  nature  as  will  admit  of  being  dried,  it  is  better  to  dry  from 
the  mordant  previous  to  dyeing.  This  last  property  of  acetic 
acid  is  very  convenient,  as  it  frees  the  cloth  from  any  super- 
fluous acid  which  may  have  been  in  the  mordant ;  besides,  it 
has  been  found  that  during  the  drying,  by  heat,  the  soluble 
acetate  is  converted  into  a  subacetate  still  more  insoluble — 
and  be  it  observed,  high  solubility  is  another  very  important 
qualification  of  a  mordant.  We  may  here  put  our  brethren 
in  mind  of  the  following  facts  : — 

That  when  goods  containing  volatile  acids  are  drying,  no  other  goods  should  be 
allowed  to  be  in  the  same  apartment,  as  the  acid  will  combine  with  them,  and  will 
affect  almost  any  color  that  either  is  or  may  be  afterwards  given  them.  Many 
unpleasant  and  also  expensive  consequences  occur  from  the  neglect  of  these 
matters. 

During  the  various  applications  of  these  aluminous  mor- 
dants, and  the  manipulation  attending  them,  many  curious 
and  interesting  chemical  phenomena  are  witnessed  by  the 
dyer.  Although  his  familiarity  with  them  prevents  altogether 
any  particular  remark,  we  shall  instance  one  or  two  of  those, 
attendant  upon  the  process  of  dyeing  madder  reds,  by  means 
of  acetate  of  alumina.  This  process,  however,  is  more  im- 
mediately connected  with  calico-printing  (and  will  be  noticed 
more  at  large  when  we  come  to  speak  upon  that  subject), 
while  our  particular  object  at  present  is  dyeing  to  be  finished 
as  such : — The  cloth  to  be  dyed  is  first  thoroughly  bleached 


MORDANTS. 


257 


and  dried,  it  is  then  padded,  or  soaked  in  acetate  of  alumina 
about  the  specific  gravity  of  40°  (8  Twaddell),  and  passed  at 
full  breadth  through  nipping'  rollers  (squeezers).  These  are 
large  rollers  covered  with  cloth,  which  revolve  one  upon  an- 
other. The  pressure  upon  the  piece  as  it  passes  through  for 
the  purpose  we  are  describing,  should  be  such  that  it  will 
dry  in  five  minutes,  passing  over  rollers  in  a  stove  heated  to 
160°  Fah.  After  being  dried  proceed  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — 

1.  The  goods  are  passed  through  a  dung  bath,  made  up  with  about  one  part 
cows'  dung  to  fifty  parts  water,  at  a  heat  of  130°  Fah. ;  from  this  they  are  well 
washed  through  the  dash-wheel. 

2.  Into  a  boiler  of  cold  water  is  put  from  one  to  three  pounds  of  madder,  ac- 
cording to  the  color  wanted,  for  every  pound  of  cloth. 

3.  The  cloth  is  put  in,  and  a  fire  is  kindled  under  the  boiler,  and  so  regulated 
that  it  will  boil  in  two  hours,  during  which  the  cloth  is  kept  running  over  the 
winch  or  reel,  first  in  one  direction  and  then  the  other,  and  kept  spread  as  much 
as  possible,  so  that  the  whole  surface  may  be  equally  exposed  to  the  dyeing  ope- 
ration. 

4.  The  boiler  is  kept  at  the  boil  from  twenty  to  thirty  minutes ;  this,  with  wash- 
ing first  through  bran,  and  then  water,  completes  the  dyeing  operation. 

If  a  white  pattern  be  wanted  upon  these  reds,  the  pattern 
is  printed  upon  the  goods  with  citric  acid,  (about  25°  of 
Twaddell,  thickened  with  pipe-clay  and  gum) — about  twelve 
or  twenty-four  hours*  after  being  dried  from  the  mordant. 
This  decomposes  the  aluminous  mordant  upon  these  parts,  so 
that  no  dye  adheres  to  them  afterwards.  Now,  from  a  differ- 
ence in  the  manipulation,  or  a  little  variation  upon  some  of 
these  processes,  several  curious  changes  take  place  upon  the 
mordant.  For  example,  were  the  pieces  merely  washed  with 
water  from  the  mordant,  previous  to  printing  on  the  resist 


*  It  is  of  the  utmost  consequence  that  the  goods  be  thoroughly  cooled  previous 
to  printing  on  the  resist,  otherwise  there  is  danger  of  it  not  being  successful.  Pieces 
mordanted  with  acetate  of  alumina,  and  dried  at  a  great  heat,  are  highly  chang- 
ed with  electricity.  If  the  hand  be  suddenly  drawn  along  the  piece,  a  complete 
shower  of  fire  is  observed,  with  a  sharp  cracking  noise — at  the  same  lime  a  prickling 
sensation  is  felt.  Whether  this  has  any  effect  upon  the  mordant,  in  its  imme- 
diately combining  with  other  substances,  we  do  not  know,  but  cloth  in  this  state  is 
very  difficult  to  moisten :  water  runs  off  it  as  off  a  duck's  wing,  but  as  yet  we  offer, 
no  explanation,  our  researches  not  being  complete. — (See  chapter  I,  Part  VI  ^ 

33 


258 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


acid,  although  the  treatment  be  every  way  else  the  same,  the 
discharge  of  the  mordant  is  not  effected,  these  parts  upon 
which  the  citric  acid  is  printed  will  be  scarcely  observable 
after  the  cloth  is  dyed,  while  in  the  other  case  they  are  per- 
fectly white. 

A  somewhat  similar  result,  in  reference  to  the  action  of  the 
discharge  acid,  takes  place,  if  the  heat  of  the  stove  in  which 
the  goods  are  dried  from  the  mordant  exceeds  a  certain  tem- 
perature, or  if  dried  upon  steam  rollers.*  No  acid,  printed 
upon  the  cloth  after  this,  will  produce  a  white,  except  it  be  of 
a  strength  that  will  destroy  the  texture  of  the  goods  :  besides 
this,  the  colors  afterwards  dyed  upon  mordants  heated  in  this 
manner,  are  extremely  bad,  being  heavy  and  dull. 

Various  opinions  have  been  offered  by  practical  men  upon 
the  probable  cause  of  these  changes :  some  suppose  that  by 
the  excess  of  heat,  the  acetate  of  alumina  is  altogether  de- 
composed, the  acetic  acid  flying  off,  and  the  alumina  left  in 
union  with  the  goods,  which  adheres  with  such  an  affinity 
that  it  requires  a  stronger  acid  than  the  cloth  will  bear  to  dis- 
engage it ;  but  from  the  similarity  of  the  effects  which  take 
place  by  merely  washing  the  piece  from  the  mordant,  this 
opinion  is  liable  to  objection,  for  the  sub-acetate  of  alumina  is 
not  decomposed  by  washing  with  water ;  however,  different 
causes  may  produce  the  same  effects.  If  the  above  opinion 
be  correct,  the  circumstance  of  a  bad  color  resulting  from  the 
acetate  being  decomposed,  it  will  follow  that  it  is  not  the  alu- 
mina alone  which  constitutes  a  mordant,  but  its  salt ;  in  this 
case,  it  is  the  sub-acetate  of  alumina — the  acetic  acid  being 
an  essential  ingredient  to  the  dyeing  process.  This  we  are 
inclined  to  believe,  for  in  those  mordants,  as  we  have  already 
stated,  where  the  acid  can  be  separated  by  washing,  the 
proper  color  is  not  produced  until  some  salt  or  acid  be  added 
to  the  coloring  matter  as  an  alterant.  It  is  supposed  by 
some  writers,  that  the  dunging  and  washing  extracts  the 
acid  from  the  mordant,  and  leaves  the  base  upon  the  cloth. 


*  Large  metal  cylinders  into  which  steam  is  admitted,  and  the  cloth  passed  ovei 
the  surface.— (See  Calico-Printing,  Part  VI.) 


MORDANTS. 


259 


This  we  conceive  to  be  an  error ;  for,  although  the  part 
which  dung  acts  in  these  processes  is  not  well  understood, 
yet  from  the  analysis  of  this  substance,  and  the  nature  of  the 
salts  which  are  supposed  to  be  useful  in  these  operations, 
there  is  no  probability  for  the  aluminous  salt  being  decom- 
posed. One  principal  use  of  the  dung  bath  is  to  combine 
with  and  carry  off  any  loose  or  supernatant  mordant  which 
may  be  upon  the  cloth,  not  combined,  and  which  might 
affect  the  color,  or  more  particularly,  the  parts  wanted  white. 

The  acetate  of  alumina  is  easily  prepared  by  mixing  a  so- 
lution of  acetate  of  barytes,  lime  or  lead  with  alum.  When 
any  of  these  salts  are  added  to  alum,  a  double  decomposition 
takes  place;  the  sulphuric  acid  of  the  alum  combines  with 
the  base  of  the  salt  which  falls  to  the  bottom  ;  the  acetic  acid 
unites  with  the  alumina,  forming  acetate  of  alumina,  which 
remains  in  solution,  mixed  with  the  sulphate  of  potash  which 
formed  a  constituent  of  the  alum.  The  acetate  of  lead  is  the 
salt  generally  used  for  this  purpose  in  the  dye-house  ;*  the 
proportions  of  the  lead  and  alum  vary  according  to  the  nature 
of  the  color  to  be  dyed,  and  the  peculiar  taste  of  the  dyer,  for 
the  preparation  of  this  substance  is  one  of  those  operations 
which  every  one  who  practices  it  thinks  he  has  the  best 
method,  but  so  far  as  we  have  had  an  opportunity  of  know- 
ing, the  superiority  only  existed  in  the  mind  of  the  individual, 
or  rather  in  its  being  kept  secret. 

The  following  method  we  have  found  to  answer  very  well 
for  general  use  : — 

1.  Into  a  boiler  or  pot  put  20  lbs.  of  crystalized  alum  with  about  nine  gallons 
water,  and  boil  till  the  alum  is  completely  dissolved. 

2.  In  a  separate  vessel  dissolve  20  lbs.  of  acetate  of  lead  in  about  three  gallons 
of  boiling  water.  This  is  added  to  the  alum  while  at  a  boiling  heat,  and  well 
stirred.  The  sulphuric  acid  combines  with  the  lead,  forming  an  insoluble  sulphate 
of  lead,  which  falls  to  the  bottom  a  heavy  white  precipitate — the  acetate  of  alu- 
mina forms  the  clear  liquor. 

The  difference  in  the  preparation  of  this  mordant  is  in  the 
proportion  of  lead  varying  from  one  half  of  the  alum  to  equal 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Acetate  of  Lead. 


260 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


weights.  There  is  also  added  to  the  alum  and  lead  a  quan- 
tity of  carbonate  of  soda  varying  from  four  to  eight  ounces 
to  five  pounds  of  alum.  This  is  added  for  the  purpose  of 
neutralizing  any  excess  of  acid  which  may  be  present ;  but 
there  are  many  dyers  who  will  not  use  soda  or  any  other 
alkaline  substance  when  light  bright  shades  are  wanted, 
under  the  impression  that  the  color  is  much  brighter  without 
alkalies,  but  the  difference  of  hue  is  hardly  perceptible.  Some 
use  lime ;  soda,  however,  is  best — without  soda  or  some  other 
alkaline  substance,  the  mordant  is  not  so  effective.  There 
are  also  some  who  object  to  the  use  of  soda,  as  it  throws 
down  the  alumina  ;  but  we  have  already  noticed  under 
cubical  alum,  that  a  very  little  acid  holds  the  alumina  in 
solution ;  so  that  although  soda,  when  added  to  the  acetate 
of  alumina,  appears  to  precipitate  the  alumina,  by  a  little 
agitation  the  precipitate  is  again  dissolved,  forming  a  mordant 
better  adapted  for  strength  of  color.  From  the  following  re- 
cipes it  will  be  observed,  that  the  qualities  of  the  aluminous 
mordants  are  similar  both  in  England  and  France : — 

ENGLISH. 
100  pots  boiling  water, 

100  pounds  alum,  I     This  mordant  is  best 

100  pounds  acetate  of  lead,      j       adapted  for  reds. 
10  pounds  crystalized  soda.  J 

FRENCH. 
100  pots  boiling  water,  "| 

100  pounds  alum,  This  is  best  for  bright 

50  pounds  acetate  of  lead,      |"  yellows. 
6  pounds  soda.  j 

In  addition  to  the  above,  Dr.  Ure  in  his  Dictionary  of  the 
Arts  and  Manufactures,  article  "  Calico-printing,"  gives  an- 
other proportion : — 

50  gallons  boiling  water. 
100  pounds  alum. 
75  pounds  acetate  of  lead. 
1 0  pounds  soda. 

The  following  curious  phenomenon  was  observed  by  Gay 
Lussac.  viz..  that  the  solution  of  a  pure  salt  of  the  acetate  of 


MORDANTS. 


261 


alumina  may  be  boiled  without  decomposition ;  but  if  sul- 
phate of  potash,  or  any  other  neutral  salt  of  an  alkali  be 
present,  the  solution  becomes  turbid  when  heated,  and  a  basic 
salt  precipitates,  which  dissolves  again  on  cooling.  Now  the 
acetate  of  alumina,  prepared  from  the  common  alum,  always 
contains  sulphate  of  potash.*  If  by  the  presence  of  this  salt 
a  portion  of  the  acetate  of  alumina  be  thrown  down  when 
hot,  and  being  incorporated  with  the  sulphate  of  lead,  which 
falls  in  a  very  dense  state,  it  may  there  be  lost  to  the  dyer. 
Whether  this  be  so  we  know  not,  as  we  have  not,  since  we 
knew  of  this  phenomenon,  had  an  opportunity  of  putting  it 
to  the  test ;  but  it  would  be  advisable  to  stir  the  whole  after 
becoming  cold,  that  if  any  of  this  basic  salt  should  be  bound 
up  with  the  precipitate,  it  might  be  set  at  liberty  and  dis- 
solved ;  but  it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  if  this  be  stirred 
when  cold,  it  takes  a  long  time  to  settle. 

The  most  of  the  acetate  of  alumina  used  in  dyeing  is 
prepared  from  pyroligneous  acid,  and  is  called  by  calico- 
printers  red  liquor  ft  but  by  dyers  mordant.  No  other  sub- 
stance, whatever  be  its  nature,  is  distinguished  as  mordant. 
The  pyroligneous  acid  is  one  of  the  products  of  the  destruc- 
tive distillation  of  woods.J  The  hard  woods,  such  as  oak, 
ash,  birch,  and  beech,  alone  are  used  ;  they  are  put  into  large 
cast-iron  cylinders,  so  constructed  that  a  fire  plays  about 
them,  so  as  to  keep  them  at  a  red  heat,  having  openings 
through  which  all  volatile  matter  escapes  by  pipes,  which 
lead  into  condensing  vats.  The  matters  thus  obtained  con- 
sist principally  of  pyroligneous  acid,  mixed  with  a  black 
tarry  matter,  having  a  very  strong  smell,  from  which  the  acid 
had  its  name,  although  it  has  been  long  since  known  that  it 
is  simply  acetic  acid  (vinegar).  There  is  a  great  variety  of 
other  substances  present,  some  of  which  have  very  singular 
properties,  and  some  of  the  Continental  chemists  suppose 
they  might  be  made  available  in  dyeing.  The  products  of 
the  distillation  of  the  woods  are  allowed  to  stand  for  some 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Alum.  t  See  Calico- Printing. 

%  See  chapter  V.,  Part  I.,  article  Pyroligneous  Acid. 


262 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


time,  after  which  as  much  of  the  tarry  matter  as  swims  is 
skimmed  off ;  the  remainder  is  filtered,  after  which  it  is  put 
into  a  boiler  and  heated  a  little,  and  lime  added  by  degrees, 
till  the  acid  is  neutralized  ;  then  a  quantity  of  lime  is  added 
in  excess ;  the  whole  is  then  made  to  boil ;  this  throws  up 
the  tarry  matter  to  the  top,  where  it  is  taken  off ;  when  it  is 
purified  as  much  as  possible  by  this  means  it  is  syphoned  off 
into  another  boiler,  and  a  quantity  of  alum  added ;  the  ace- 
tate of  lime,  the  sulphate  of  alumina  and  potash,  mutually 
decompose  each  other ;  the  sulphate  of  lime  falls  to  the  bot- 
tom ;  and  the  acetate  of  alumina  remains  in  solution,  which, 
when  sent  to  the  dyers,  has  generally  a  specific  gravity  of 
1-90  (18  Twaddell),  It  has  a  dark  brown  color,  and  a  very 
strong  pyromatic  odor.  When  the  acetic  acid  is  wanted 
pure,  it  passes  through  a  number  of  other  processes  which  do 
not  come  within  our  province  to  describe  in  this  place.* 

TIN. — This  metal  has  nearly  the  color  and  lustre  ol 
silver  ;  it  is  one  of  the  few  metals  which  were  known  to  man 
at  a  very  early  period  of  his  history,  and  was  extensively 
used  in  all  countries,  both  east  and  west,  having  any  preten- 
sions to  civilization.  This  was  probably  owing  to  the  ores 
of  the  metal  being  easily  reduced  to  the  metallic  state,  these 
being  in  general  oxides  ;  so  that  by  merely  fusing  them  with 
carbonaceous  matter,  such  as  coal,  which  combines  with  the 
oxygen,  the  metal  is  fused  and  sinks  in  the  melted  state  to 
the  bottom  of  the  furnace. 

The  principal  localities  for  obtaining  tin,  are  Cornwall  in 
England,  Bohemia,  Mexico,  and  the  East  Indies ;  the  former 
of  these  has  been  wrought  for  many  ages,  and  may  almost  be 
said  to  be  the  first  nucleus  of  civilization  in  Great  Britain,  as 
it  formed  the  great  mart  where  the  civilized  and  commercial 
Phoenicians  obtained  the  tin  which  was  so  extensively  used 
by  them.  The  ore  is  found  in  Cornwall  both  in  veins  tra- 
versing the  primary  rocks,  and  in  small  rounded  grains  in  the 
neighborhood  of  these  rocks,  imbedded  in  what  geologists 


*  See  Appendix,  articles  Red  liquor  and  Acetate  of  Alumina,  and  Aluminate  of 
Potash;  see  also  Chapter  "V.,  Part  I.,  article  Acetic  Acid. 


MORDANTS. 


263 


term  the  alluvial  deposited  This  gives  the  purest  tin,  and 
is  distinguished  by  the  name  of  stream  tin.  The  ore  ob- 
tained from  the  veins  is  generally  contaminated  with  other 
metals,  such  as  iron,  copper,  arsenic,  and  the  like,  but  is  par- 
tially purified  by  liquation,  that  is,  by  heating  the  mass  to  the 
melting  point  of  tin,  which  melts  out  and  leaves  the  others. 
Several  other  operations  of  refining  follow  this,  which  need 
not  be  detailed ;  but  there  are  always  some  little  of  the  im- 
purities remaining  in  a  portion  of  the  tin.  That  portion 
which  contains  these  impurities,  is  termed  block  tin.  The 
pure  grain  tin  is  heated  till  it  becomes  brittle,  and  is  then  let 
fall  from  a  height,  which  splits  it  into  small  bars  or  prisms,  in 
which  state  it  is  found  in  commerce.  These  bars  in  bending, 
make  a  peculiar  crackling  noise,  and  become  heated.  These 
phenomena  are  probably  owing  to  the  separating  of  its  parts, 
and  the  sudden  fracture  caused  by  bending.  Tin  is  very  ex- 
tensively used  in  dyeing  and  printing  both  cotton  and  woolen. 
The  introduction  of  this  substance  as  a  mordant  may  be  con- 
sidered as  forming  an  era  in  the  art  of  dyeing,  and  like  many 
other  important  improvements  in  this  art,  it  was  the  result  of 
accident,  which  is  given  by  Berthollet  as  follows  : — "  A  little 
while  after  the  cochineal  became  known  in  Europe,  the  scar- 
let process  by  means  of  the  solution  of  tin  was  discovered. 
It  is  stated  that  about  the  year  1630,  Cornelius  Drebbel  ob- 
served by  an  accidental  mixture,  the  brilliancy  which  the  so- 
lution of  tin  gave  to  the  infusion  of  cochineal.  He  commu- 
nicated his  observations  to  his  son-in-law  KufTelar,  who  was  a 
dyer  at  Leyden.  He  soon  improved  the  process,  kept  it  a 
secret  in  his  work-shop,  and  brought  into  vogue  the  color 
which  bore  his  name." 

Soon  thereafter,  a  German  chemist  found  out  also  the  pro- 
cess of  dyeing  scarlet  by  means  of  the  solution  of  tin.  He 
brought  his  secret  to  London  in  1643 ;  it  became  known  to 
others,  and  was  soon  afterwards  diffused  over  Europe,  and  its 
applications  became  more  extended,  and  whenever  a  new  dye 


*  Signifying  the  deposite  formed  by  the  washing  away  of  the  fragments  of  the 
primary  rocks  with  water. 


264 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING- 


drug  was  introduced  into  the  art,  the  solution  of  tin  was  uni 
versally  applied,  by  which  means  it  became  a  standard  mor- 
dant for  the  various  dye-woods,  such  as  logwood,  Brazil-wood, 
and  the  like. 

The  oxides  of  tin  possess  a  similar  property  to  alumina,  in 
combining  with  astringent  and  coloring  substances,  and  form- 
ing insoluble  compounds.  To  obtain  these  oxides  in  a  state 
applicable  to  dyeing,  it  is  necessary  to  dissolve  the  metal  in 
some  acid,  which  is  generally  muriatic  and  nitric  acid,*  either 
separately  or  mixed,  according  to  the  substance  to  be  dyed,  or 
the  coloring  matter  used.  When  an  acid  dissolves  a  metal, 
the  metal  is  said  to  be  first  oxidized,  either  at  the  expense  of 
the  water  or  the  acid,  and  the  acid  only  combines  with  and 
dissolves  this  oxide.  Thus,  if  nitric  acid  be  used,  it  forms  the 
nitrate  of  the  oxide  of  tin,  and  when  muriatic  acid  is  used,  it 
is  the  muriate  of  the  oxide  of  tin ;  but  with  this  last,  the  way 
of  expressing  it  is  conditional ;  even  chemists  do  not  altogether 
agree  upon  this  point.  Muriatic  acid  is  composed  of  chlorine 
and  hydrogen  combined  with  water ;  when  tin  is  put  into  this 
acid,  there  is  an  evolution  of  hydrogen  gas.  Whether  this 
hydrogen  be  from  the  decomposition  of  the  water  or  the  acid, 
is  not  correctly  known  ;  if  it  be  from  the  decomposition  of  the 
water,  the  salt  is  then  a  muriate  of  the  oxide  of  tin ;  but  if  it 
be  from  the  decomposition  of  the  acid,  the  salt  is  simply  a 
soluble  chloride.  This  difficulty  leads  the  student  astray,  as 
he  sometimes  finds  in  chemical  works  mention  made  of  the 
chloride  of  tin,  and  none  of  the  muriate,  which,  being  most 
familiar  with  the  term,  he  is  searching  for ;  but  for  all  practi- 
cal purposes,  they  are  synonymous.  The  distinction  followed 
by  some  is,  that  when  the  metal  is  dissolved  in  the  acid,  and 
kept  in  solution,  such  as  is  used  by  the  dyers,  it  is  a  muriate  ; 
but  when  crystalized,  or  brought  to  a  certain  temperature,  it 
is  a  chloride. 

The  solutions  of  tin,  in  the  technical  language  of  the  dye- 
house,  are  termed  sjjirits,  with  an  affix  to  each  mode  of  pre- 


*  These  acids  are  described,  under  their  proper  heads,  in  chapter  V.,  Part  L, 
and  to  which  the  reader  is  referred. 


MORDANTS. 


265 


paration,  to  denote  their  special  application,  such  as  red 
spirits,  yellow  spirits,  plumb  spirits,  &c.  The  preparation 
of  these  spirits  are  matters  of  much  pride  amongst  dyers, 
and  each  has  some  little  peculiarity  he  keeps  to  himself, 
and  to  the  virtue  of  which  he  supposes  all  his  success  de- 
pends. These  peculiarities  are  generally  in  the  proportion 
of  the  acids  and  the  tin,  and  the  manner  of  mixing  them 
However,  as  may  be  supposed,  they  are  not  all  equally  an- 
swerable for  all  purposes  to  which  they  are  applied ;  hence 
the  reason  that  we  find  one  dyer  best  at  reds,  another  at 
purples,  another  at  blacks,  and  another  at  browns. 

The  first  process  in  preparing  spirits,  is  to  feather  the  tin, 
and  which  is  accomplished  in  the  following  manner : — 

Melt  the  tin  in  an  iron  ladle  and  pour  it  when  in  this  state  into  a  vessel  filled 
with  cold  water  (a  common  tub  will  answer  the  purpose),  the  hand  to  be  held  as 
high  as  possible  so  that  it  may  pour  more  in  drops. 

The  appearance  of  the  tin  in  this  state  is  beyond  descrip- 
tion beautiful.  By  this  process  of  feathering,  a  very  ex- 
tended surface  of  metal  is  exposed  to  the  acid,  which  facil- 
itates its  solution  very  much. 

Brazil-wood  Red  Spirits. — If  red  spirits  be  wanted,  that 
is,  a  mordant  for  dyeing  red  upon  cotton  by  Brazil-ivood, 
the  general  method  is  as  follows : — 

Take  three  measures  of  muriatic  acid,  and  one  of  nitric  acid,  then  add  the  tin  by 
degrees  to  this  mixture.  So  long  as  the  acids  continue  to  dissolve  it,  care  ought 
to  be  taken  not  to  add  the  metal  too  rapidly,  but  bit  by  bit,  adding  one  piece  just 
as  the  other  is  dissolved. 

We  know  that  this  is  not  generally  attended  to,  as  one 
handful  of  the  metal  is  put  in  after  another,  at  certain  and 
too  often  irregular  intervals  of  time,  giving  very  annoying 
results.  When  the  metal  is  put  in  too  rapidly,  or  too  much 
at  once,  the  action  becomes  violent,  the  solution  gets  heated, 
the  nitric  acid  is  decomposed,  ammonia  is  formed  in  the 
solution,  and  a  quantity  of  peroxidised  tin  falls  to  the  bottom 
when  the  solution  cools,  as  a  gelatinous  precipitate,  creating 
much  loss.  When  spirits  thus  prepared  are  used  for  a  bril- 
liant red  upon  cotton  by  Brazil-wood,  the  proper  hue  is  never 
obtained,  the  color  being  always  more  or  less  brownish.  The 

34 


266 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


proportion  of  these  acids  for  preparing  the  red  spirits,  are  not 
invariably  three  to  one,  the  mixture  varies  from  half  and 
half  to  five  to  one,  depending  upon  the  taste  and  experience 
of  the  dyer.  Some  also,  only  dissolve  a  given  quantity  of 
the  metal  to  the  pound  weight  of  the  mixed  acids,  varying 
from  one  and  a  half  to  three  ounces  to  the  pound ;  but  ac- 
cording to  our  experience,  the  acids  in  whatever  proportions 
they  are  mixed,  ought  to  be  saturated,  at  least  so  far  as  they 
will  become  saturated,  observing  the  precautions  described 
above.  We  have  also  found  that  when  much  nitric  acid  is 
used,  the  reds  are  generally  deeper  in  color  and  have  a  very 
great  tendency  to  turn  brown,  especially  if  the  goods  be  dried 
in  heat ;  but  when  the  muriatic  acid  prevails,  the  color  ob- 
tained has  more  of  the  crimson  or  rose  tint,  and  is  not  so 
liable  to  brown  in  dyeing. 

Although  the  solution  of  tin  we  have  just  described,  is 
technically  termed  red  spirits,  it  may  with  equal  propriety 
be  called  purple,  brown,  crimson,  nay,  in  many  instances, 
drab  spirits,  for  it  is  used  for  all  these  colors.  If  we  take  the 
goods  prepared  for  red  as  detailed  in  chapter  III.,  of  this  Part, 
under  Brazil-wood  Red,  and  put  them  through  a  decoction 
of  logwood  instead  of  Brazil-wood,  we  have  a  deep  purple ; 
if  we  use  a  mixture  of  logwood  and  Brazil-wood,  we  get  a 
crimson,  a  marone,  &c,  according  to  the  proportion  of  the 
mixture ;  if  we  use  a  decoction  of  quercitron  bark,  we  get 
a  deep  yellow,  and  by  working  this  yellow  through  a  mix- 
ture of  logwood  and  Brazil-wood,  we  have  brown.  Thus, 
the  same  mordant  is  made  available  to  a  great  variety  of 
colors ;  and  we  need  hardly  mention  that  by  varying  the 
strength  of  these  decoctions,  light  and  dark  shades  may  be 
obtained  of  the  same  color,  although  when  light  shades  of  the 
same  color  are  wanted,  it  is  preferable  to  use  weaker  mor- 
dants. 

When  very  light  shades  of  purples,  puces,  and  lilacs,  are 
\vanted,  or  lavender,  violet,  peach  blossom,  and  the  like,  a 
different  process  is  adopted.  The  logwood  and  the  tin  solu- 
tion are  mixed  in  certain  proportions,  and  the  goods  require 
no  previous  mordant.     This  mixed  solution  is  termed  a 


MORDANTS. 


267 


plumb  tub,  and  by  some  a  French  tub,  being  first  introduced 
by  the  French  for  the  dyeing  of  silk.  The  plumb  spirits  are 
simply  a  protochloride  of  tin.  The  general  proportions  used 
by  dyers  are  as  follows  : — 

Seven  measures  of  muriatic  acid,  and  one  water,  adding  two  ounces  of  tin  to 
every  pound  weight  of  the  mixture;  but  in  this,  as  in  the  others,  care  must  be 
taken  not  to  add  the  tin  too  rapidly. 

It  is  well  known  to  all  who  dissolve  tin  in  muriatic  acid  in 
quantity,  that  if  much  metal  be  put  into  the  acid  at  once, 
towards  the  end  of  the  operation,  parts  of  the  metal  seem 
to  dissolve  away,  while  other  parts  become  coated  with  a 
white  crystaline  substance  barely  soluble,  occasioning  much 
annoyance  and  loss.  This  is  caused  by  one  part  of  the  so- 
lution becoming  denser  than  another;  a  galvanic  action  is 
induced  between  those  parts  of  the  tin  in  the  weaker  portion 
of  the  solution,  and  the  parts  in  the  stronger,  consequently, 
depositing  the  tin  from  the  solution  upon  the  negative  end, 
which  is  at  the  bottom,  where  the  liquor  is  most  saturated. 
This  can  be  prevented  by  occasionally  stirring  the  solution. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  plumb  spirits,  it  is  best  to  use 
pure  muriatic  acid  without  water,  and  to  add  the  tin  by  de- 
grees, and  as  long  as  the  acid  continues  to  dissolve  it ;  and 
where  it  can  be  obtained  without  much  cost,  we  would  re- 
commend the  salt  of  tin  being  crystalized.  It  is  sold  in  this  * 
state  by  many  drysalters,  but  we  have  often  found  it  in  the 
market  very  impure. 

A  plumb  tub  is  prepared  as  follows : — 

A  quantity  of  chipped  logwood  is  put  into  a  boiler  or  large  pot  filled  with  water ; 
this  is  brought  to  boil,  and  kept  boiling  till  the  decoction  has  the  density  of  at  least 
8°  Twaddell ;  this  is  carefully  decanted  into  a  tall  vessel,  and  allowed  to  stand  for 
a  few  days  to  allow  a  quantity  of  tarry  matter  and  other  impurities  to  settle  to  the 
bottom.  It  is  also  of  importance  that  the  decoction  be  perfectly  cold;  for  if  at  all 
above  summer  heat,  a  portion  of  the  logwood  will  be  precipitated  on  the  addition 
of  the  tin.  The  decoction  is  again  decanted  into  a  suitable  vessel,  generally  a  large 
cask  or  wine-pipe ;  to  this  the  chloride  of  tin  or  spirits  is  added  until  the  hydrome- 
ter rises  to  14°.  If  the  chloride  of  tin  has  been  crystalized,  two  or  three  degrees 
less  will  suffice  and  make  a  better  plumb.  After  standing  twenty-four  hours  it  is 
fit  for  use.  This  forms  a  kind  of  stock  vat,  out  of  which  portions  are  taken,  and 
diluted  or  used  strong,  as  occasion  requires;  it  lasts  a  long  time,  as  the  goods  do 


268 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


not  seem  to  extract  the  coloring  matter  from  the  solution  as  in  other  dyes,  except 
by  long  immersion.  When  a  mordant  is  upon  them,  they  generally  assume  a  color 
corresponding  to  the  strength  of  the  solution. 

We  will  have  occasion  to  notice  (see  Black  Dye  of  this 
Part)  the  peculiar  compound  formed  between  the  tin  and  log- 
wood in  this  mode  of  combining  them,  when  treating  of  log- 
wood and  its  combinations  ;  but  we  cannot  help  inquiring 
here  upon  what  theoretical  law  does  the  dyeing  by  the 
plumb  tub  depend  ?  It  is  not  ordinary  precipitation ;  for  this 
compound  is  soluble,  and  is  held  in  solution  for  years  :  we 
have  known  one  kept  two  and  a-half  years,  and  used  after. 
The  goods  have  no  mordant  upon  them  previous  to  being 
immersed,  and  in  a  short  time  they  obtain  a  dye  sufficiently 
permanent  to  stand  all  the  usual  fatigues  of  fancy  colors. 
That  it  is  a  chemical  union  between  the  compound  consti- 
tuting the  plumb  tub  and  the  cloth  is  not  tenable ;  for,  as 
we  have  already  shown,  this  cannot  take  place  but  between 
the  atoms  of  matter,  and  at  the  expense  of  the  original  prop- 
erties of  the  two  substances,  which  combine.  Now  the  cloth 
remains  unchanged  in  properties  except  color,  which  may  be 
taken  off  without  in  the  least  interfering  with  the  properties 
•of  the  cloth.  Our  opinion  is,  that  in  this,  as  in  several  other 
cases  in  dyeing,  the  cloth  exerts  a  catalytic  influence  over 
the  compound  of  tin  and  logwood ;  that  is,  a  certain  power 
of  causing  bodies  in  contact  to  combine  or  resolve  themselves 
into  other  compounds,  while  the  substance  exerting  the  in- 
fluence is  not  affected  ;  as,  for  instance,  a  piece  of  platinum 
put  into  a  mixture  of  oxygen  and  hydrogen,  will  cause  these 
two  gases  to  combine  and  form  water  ;  or  a  little  sulphuric 
acid  put  into  starch  will  convert  the  starch  into  sugar,  with- 
out the  acid  being  destroyed.  So,  in  the  same  way,  the  cloth 
being  put  into  this  soluble  solution  of  tin  and  logwood,  may, 
by  inducing  a  very  slight  transformation,  convert  it  into  the 
insoluble  compound  of  tin  and  logwood ;  and,  like  other 
dyes,  fills  up  the  hollow  fibres  of  the  cloth,  producing  dark  or 
light  shades  accordingly. 

The  plumb  tub  gives  white  goods  the  various  shades,  from 
a  French  white  to  a  deep  plumb,  by  dyeing  the  cloth  first 


MORDANTS. 


269 


light  blue,  and  then  immersing  it  in  this  preparation.  Vari 
ous  shades  of  lilacs,  puces,  &c,  are  obtained  by  immersing 
the  goods  for  some  time  in  sumac,  and  then  passing  them 
through  the  plumb  liquor.  Various  shades  of  peach  blossoms 
are  got  in  the  same  way.  Thus,  by  a  little  manipulation,  a 
great  variety  of  shades  and  colors  are  produced  by  one  costly 
preparation. 

Yellow  Spirits. — These  are  prepared  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  red  spirits,  only  substituting  sulphuric  acid  for  ni- 
tric acid.  This  method  of  preparing  the  solution  of  tin 
was  first  recommended  by  Dr.  Bancroft  as  a  cheaper  method 
of  preparing  scarlet  spirits,  but  it  was  never  much  used  for 
this  purpose,  but  it  was  used  for  a  long  time  for  dyeing  a 
deep  yellow  upon  cotton  with  a  decoction  of  quercitron  bark : 
but  the  introduction  of  the  bichromate  of  potash,  as  a  dye- 
ing agent,  has  almost  entirely  superseded  every  other  method 
of  dyeing  yellow,  as  it  combines  within  itself  every  quali- 
fication necessary  to  give  it  precedency,  namely,  beauty, 
durability,  and  cheapness. — (See  Yellow,  chapter  III.  of  this 
Part.) 

Barwood-Red  Spirits  are  prepared  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — 

Take  six  measures  muriatic  acid  and  one  nitric  acid,  add  tin  by  degrees  until 
white  bubbles  begin  to  rise  to  the  surface ;  allow  this  to  stand  for  twelve  hours  be- 
fore using. 

This  is  the  instruction  generally  given  by  practical  bar- 
wood-red  dyers  for  the  preparation  of  their  spirits ;  but  this 
olor  being  rather  difficult  to  dye,  except  by  much  experience, 
owing  to  many  peculiar  properties  of  the  barwood,  we  there- 
fore refer  the  reader  to  chapter  III.  of  this  Part,  article  Bar- 
wood-Red. 

Many  other  methods  of  dissolving  the  tin  are  practised  by 
woolen  and  silk  dyers,  such  as  the  following : — 

Take  six  pounds  nitric  acid  and  one  water,  dissolve  in  this  one  pound  of  sal 
ammoniac,  to  which  add  ten  ounces  of  tin. 

The  proportions  of  sal  ammoniac  and  tin  are  points  upon 
which  practical  dyers  differ.    Some  use  a  little  common  salt 


270 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


as  well  as  sal  ammoniac,  but  the  resulting  compound  of  tin  is 
the  same  as  in  common  red  spirits.  Sal  ammoniac  is  com- 
posed of  muriatic  acid  and  ammonia ;  the  nitric  acid  takes 
the  ammonia,  and  the  muriatic  acid  is  set  free  and  combines 
with  the  tin,  forming  what  is  termed  permuriate  of  tin.  The 
protosalts  of  tin,  dissolved  in  potash,  are  extensively  used  in 
calico-printing,  both  as  a  mordant  and  a  deoxidizing  agent — 
a  property  which  it  possesses  to  a  high  degree ;  and,  did  its 
price  not  forbid,  might  be  used  instead  of  protosulphate  of  iron 
(copperas)  in  the  common  blue  vat.  Tartrate  of  tin  is  also 
used  in  many  of  the  operations  of  calico-printing,  and  will  be 
described  when  we  come  to  speak  of  that  department  of  the 
work. 

Messrs.  Greenwood,  Mercer,  and  Barnes  obtained  a  patent, 
in  July,  1845,  "  for  certain  improvements  in  the  manufacture 
of  certain  chemical  agents  used  in  dyeing  and  printing  cot- 
ton, woolen,  and  other  fabrics."  These  improvements  con- 
sist, in  the  manufacturing  stannate  or  stannite  of  soda  or 
potash  in  a  dry,  crystaline,  or  pasty  state,  and  in  producing 
the  "  tin-preparing  liquor"  used  for  dyeing  and  printing  fabrics 
(hitherto  made  by  mixing  oxymuriate  of  tin  with  dilute  caus- 
tic soda),  by  dissolving  the  same  in  water.  The  following  is 
the  mode  of  manufacturing  stannate  of  soda : — 22  lbs.  of 
caustic  soda  are  first  put  into  an  iron  crucible,  heated  to  a  low 
red  heat  by  a  fire  beneath ;  then,  after  evaporation  has  taken 
place,  so  as  to  produce  hydrate  of  soda,  8  lbs.  of  nitrate  of 
soda  and  4  lbs.  of  common  salt  are  introduced ;  and  when 
the  mixture  is  at  the  fluxing  heat,  10  lbs.  of  feathered  block- 
tin  are  added,  and  stirred  with  an  iron  stirrer.  The  mass 
now  becomes  dark  colored  and  pasty,  and  ammonia  is  given 
off  (the  tin  decomposing  the  water  of  the  hydrated  soda  and 
part  of  the  nitrate  of  soda) ;  the  stirring  is  continued,  as  well 
as  the  application  of  heat,  until  deflagration  takes  place,  and 
the  mass  becomes  red-hot,  and  of  a  pasty  consistence.  This 
product  is  stannate  of  soda,  which,  being  reduced  to  powder 
when  cold,  is  ready  for  use ;  or,  if  it  is  required  to  be  in  a 
more  pure  state,  it  is  dissolved  and  crystalized  ;  or  it  may  be 
dissolved  and  evaporated  to  a  pasty  state,  so  dry  that  no  fluid 


MORDANTS. 


271 


will  run  from  it.  Stannite  of  soda  is  made  by  putting  4  lbs. 
of  common  salt,  13*-  lbs.  of  caustic  soda,  1  lb.  of  nitrate  of 
soda,  and  4  lbs.  of  feathered  block-tin  into  a  hot  iron  trucible, 
over  a  fire  and  stirring  and  boiling  to  dryness  ;  the  stirring  of 
the  dry  powder  being  continued  as  long  as  any  ammonia  is 
given  off :  this  dry  powder  is  stannite  of  soda. 

To  produce  the  "  tin-preparing  liquor,"  three  pounds  of 
stannate  of  soda  are  dissolved  in  one  gallon  of  boiling  water, 
and  three  gallons,  or  more,  of  cold  water  are  added,  to  bring 
it  to  the  required  strength.  The  stannite  of  soda  is  used 
in  the  same  way.  The  stannate  or  stannite  of  potash  may 
be  prepared  in  a  similar  manner  to  the  stannate  or  stannite 
of  soda. — The  patentees  claim,  Firstly, — manufacturing  stan- 
nate or  stannite  of  soda  and  potash  in  a  dry  state,  or  in 
crystals,  or  in  a  state  of  paste.  Secondly, — manufacturing 
stannate  or  stannite  of  soda  by  fluxing  nitrate  of  soda  or 
potash  and  tin.  Thirdly, — making  "tin-preparing  liquor/' 
for  dyers  and  printers,  by  dissolving  in  water,  stannate  or 
stannite  of  soda  and  potash,  which  has  been  manufactured 
in  a  dry,  crystaline  or  pasty  state. — (See  Appendix,  article 
Tin  Mordants.) 

IRON. — As  we  will  have  occasion  to  notice  the  proto 
sulphate  of  iron,  and  some  of  its  peculiar  properties  and 
combinations,  when  treating  of  the  blue  vat:  we  will  con- 
fine ourselves  here  to  the  properties  of  the  metal  as  a  mor- 
dant. 

In  the  article  referred  to,  the  blue  vat,*  the  reader  will 
find  two  oxides  of  iron  described,  namely,  the  protoxide 
and  peroxide ;  he  will  also  find  that  both  of  these  oxides 
combine  with  acids  to  form  salts,  but  that  the  protoxide 
and  protosalts,  may  be  readily  converted  into  the  peroxide 
and  persalts.  Both  of  the  salts  are  used  as  mordants,  but  the 
protosalts  are  the  best  for  vegetable  substances.  It  is,  there- 
fore, a  matter  of  much  consequence  to  preserve  the  iron  in 
this  state  of  oxidation  until  it  be  immersed  into  the  dye- 
bath  ;  this  is  effected  in  many  instances  by  astringent  sub- 


*  See  chapter  V.,  of  this  Part,  article  Chemistry  of  the  Blue  Vat. 


272 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


stances.  For  example,  in  our  detailed  process  of  dyeing 
black,*  the  goods  are  steeped  in  sumac,  then  put  through 
lime  water;  this  turns  the  sumac  on  the  cloth  green,  and 
converts  some  of  its  constituents  into  a  state  well  fitted  to 
combine  with  oxygen,  which  it  will  take  from  the  atmos- 
phere if  exposed  to  it,  thereby  losing  its  green  color  and 
resuming  the  color  it  had  when  taken  from  the  sumac. 
When  the  cloth  is  a  deep  green  it  will  combine  rapidly  with 
the  protosalts  of  iron,  such  as  copperas,  and  give  a  black 
color ;  but  if  a  persalt  of  iron  be  used,  the  resulting  color 
is  a  gray  slate.  The  former  becomes  darker  as  it  stands, 
the  latter  grayer;  but  the  theory  of  these  actions  and  re- 
actions we  must  pass  for  the  present.  When  we  take  the 
goods  rendered  black  by  the  protosalt,  and  put  them  through 
lime  water,  they  are  converted  into  a  rich  brown  from  the 
peroxidizing  of  the  iron;  but,  if  allowed  to  stand  exposed 
to  the  air  for  a  short  time,  they  assume  their  black  color 
again.  If  the  goods  are  put  into  the  logwood  when  they 
are  of  this  brown  color,  the  black  is  seldom  good.t  They 
should  always  to  be  allowed  to  assume  the  black  hue  before 
being  immersed  in  the  logwood  bath.  For  this  reason  we 
have  always  preferred  washing  them  from  the  copperas 
rather  than  putting  them  through  lime  water. 

The  general  iron  mordant  for  wood  dyes  is  the  acetate  of 
iron  (iron  liquor),  or  what  is  most  commonly  used  now,  the 
pyrolignite  of  iron.t    The  acetate  of  iron  may  be  prepared 


*  See  chapter  IX.,  of  this  Part,  article  Processes  of  Dyeing  Black. 

t  These  subjects  are  fully  discussed,  practically,  in  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article 
Logwood,  and  chapter  II.,  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of  Water. 

+  Mr.  John  D.  Prince,  of  Lowell,  Massachusetts,  obtained  a  patent,  in  this  coun- 
try, on  the  24th  of  April,  1841,  for  what  he  calls  "  A  new  mode  of  producing 
Black  Color  in  Dyeing."  We  make  the  following  extract  from  the  specification  of 
this  patent : — "I  have  ascertained  by  repeated  trials,  that  the  protosulphate  of  iron 
(copperas)  may  be  advantageously  substituted  for  the  acetate  of  iron,  as  a  mordant, 
by  bringing  it  into  that  state  which  shall  coerce  it  to  deposit  these  two  ingredients, 
the  protoxide  and  peroxide  of  iron,  on  the  goods  under  treatment.  There  are 
various  articles  which  effect  this  purpose  to  a  certain  extent,  but  that  which  I  found 
to  do  so  in  the  most  perfect  manner,  is  the  arsenious  acid  (arsenic)  mixed,  or  com- 
bined, with  the  protosulphate.  The  proportions  of  the  two  ingredients  admit  of 
considerable  latitude,  but  the  following  has  been  found  to  answer  well : — I  dissolve 


MORDANTS. 


273 


by  mixing-  together  acetate  of  lead  and  protosulphate  of  iron. 
The  sulphate  of  lead  is  formed  and  falls  to  the  bottom ;  the 
acetate  of  iron  remains  in  solution,  but  it  is  commonly  pre- 
pared by  throwing  pieces  of  iron  into  the  acid,  which  dissolves 
it.  The  pyrolignite  of  iron  is  in  general  preferable.  It  is 
prepared  by  allowing  iron  to  steep  in  pyroligneous  acid  (im- 
pure acetic  acid)  for  several  weeks.  As  this  acid  contains  a 
quantity  of  pyrogeneous  oils  and  other  impurities,  it  preserves 
the  iron  for  a  longer  time  in  the  state  of  a  protoxide  than 
almost  any  other  solvent  available  in  the  arts;  hence  the 
decided  preference  given  to  this  by  practical  men.  We  shall 
often  have  occasion  to  refer  to  this  subject,  as  it  is  one  which 
is  too  much  neglected,  and  which  produces  many  serious 
evils.  It  may,  however,  be  in  the  meantime  observed  that 
pyrolignite  of  iron,  used  instead  of  copperas  in  dyeing  black, 
gives  a  preferable  shade  of  color. 

Persalts  of  iron  are  mostly  used  for  dyeing  Prussian  blue. 


one  pound  of  copperas  in  a  gallon  of  water,  and  in  another  gallon  of  water  I  dis- 
solve four  ounces  of  white  arsenic,  and  then  mix  the  two  solutions,  which  mixture 
constitutes  my  iron  liquor.  For  transportation  it  is  desirable  to  obtain  the  ingre- 
dients from  which  the  solution  is  to  be  made,  in  a  dry  state ;  for  this  purpose  I 
take  copperas  and  drive  off  its  water  of  crystalization  by  exposing  it  to  heat  upon 
iron,  or  in  any  other  convenient  mode,  and  to  the  dried  mass  I  add  four  ounces  of 
white  arsenic  for  every  pound  of  copperas  first  taken,  the  whole  is  then  reduced 
„o  powder,  and  may  be  readily  converted  into  iron  liquor  by  adding  the  proper  quan- 
tity of  water.  The  tendency  of  the  protoxide,  in  copperas,  is  to  pass  too  rapidly 
and  completely  into  the  state  of  peroxide,  by  which  the  object  of  obtaining  a  good 
black  color  is  defeated,  an  injurious  brown  tint  being  produced.  The  arsenious 
acid,  has  the  property  of  preventing  the  peroxidation,  and  of  inducing  that  state  of 
mixed  oxide  upon  which  the  perfection  of  the  black  is  dependent,  and  this  combi- 
nation of  arsenious  acid,  and  its  application  to  the  purpose  of  producing  a  black 
color  are,  as  I  believe,  entirely  new."  Superior  methods  might  be  had  recourse  to 
for  effecting  the  same  purpose ;  and,  indeed,  common  humanity  would  dictate  the 
complete  abandonment  of  the  process  just  described,  as  the  handling  of  goods 
dyed  with  such  a  decoction  as  that  above  referred  to,  cannot  but  prove  detrimental, 
not  only  to  the  health  of  the  dyer,  but  also  to  the  wearer.  This  fact  ought  to  stim- 
ulate to  further  improvements  in  dyeing  processes ;  and  we  think  much  might  to 
this  end  be  effected  by  holding  out  moderate  premiums,  though  we  are  sorry  to  say, 
that  instead  of  receiving  a  premium,  the  workman  is  too  often  robbed  of  the  honor 
of  improvements  which  he  does  effect.  The  constant  jealousy  which  exists 
amongst  employers,  will,  we  fear,  prevent  their  joining  together  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  general  trade. 

35 


274 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Many  attempts  have  been  made  to  dye  black  by  merely  im- 
pregnating the  goods  with  peroxide  of  iron,  and  immersing 
them  into  a  decoction  of  logwood,  to  save  all  the  routine  of 
steeping,  washing,  and  dipping  of  the  ordinary  black,  but  it 
has  never  succeeded.  A  very  good  black  is  obtainable  when 
newly  dyed,  but  very  soon  changes  into  brown. 

The  principal  persalt  of  iron  used  is  the  nitrate.  This  is 
made  by  putting  clean  iron  into  nitric  acid,  by  which  it  is 
very  quickly  dissolved.  The  iron  should  be  added  as  long 
as  the  acid  continues  to  dissolve  it;  but  cautiously,  otherwise 
the  action  will  be  so  violent  as  to  cause  it  to  boil  over.  While 
engaged  in  this  process,  care  should  be  taken  not  to  breathe 
any  of  the  fumes  which  come  off,  as  they  are  very  destructive 
of  health.  The  reaction  which  takes  place  between  the  acid 
and  the  iron  may  be  thus  expressed : — The  nitric  acid  is 
composed  of  five  atoms  oxygen,  and  one  nitrogen ;  every 
fourth  atom  of  nitric  acid  in  the  solution  is  decomposed  to 
give  oxygen  to  the  iron,  so  that  the  remaining  three  atoms  of 
nitric  acid  may  combine  with  it ;  better  shown  in  the  follow- 
ing diagram : — 

Nitric  oxide. 


One  atom  nitric 
composed  of 


Nitrogen, 
Oxygen 
Oxygen 
Oxygen 
Oxygen 
..Oxygen 
3  Iron 

3  Nitric  acid 


3  Nitrate  of  iron 


The  nitric  oxide  is  the  gas  which  flies  ofT ;  but  its  attrac- 
tion for  oxygen  is  so  great,  that,  the  moment  it  is  liberated 
from  the  solution,  it  combines  with  oxygen  from  the  air,  and 
is  converted  into  nitrous  acid  gas,  the  well  known  red  fumes 
which  always  fly  off  when  metals  are  dissolved  in  this  acid. 

The  nitrate  of  iron  alone  dyes  a  buff  or  nankeen,  which  is 
probably  the  easiest  dyed  color  that  we  have,  as  it  is  only 
necessary  to  put  a  little  of  the  nitrate  of  iron  into  water, 
and  immerse  the  goods.  The  particular  use  of  this  salt  is 
for  Prussian  blue*    The  goods  are  first  dyed  buff  by  this 


*  See  chapter  V.  Part  HI.,  article  Prussiateof  Potash,  and  chapter  III.  Part  V., 
article  Prussian  Blue. 


MORDANTS. 


275 


salt  of  iron,  then  thoroughly  washed,  and  put  into  a  very- 
dilute  solution  of  ferroprussiate  of  potash, — made  acid  by  a 
few  drops  of  sulphuric  acid  ;  they  are  washed  from  this  in 
clean  water,  to  which  a  little  alum  has  been  added.  We 
have  known  many  attempts  made  to  substitute  copperas  for 
nitrate  of  iron  for  dyeing  Prussian  blue,  but  need  hardly  say 
they  were  unsuccessful.  A  very  little  knowledge  of  the  na- 
ture of  these  salts  would  have  told  the  experimenters  that 
protosalts  of  iron  give  only  a  grayish  color  with  yellow  prus- 
siate  of  potash  ;  but,  if  red  prussiate  of  potash  was  used,  cop- 
peras would  be  a  better  mordant  than  nitrare  of  iron,  as  it 
gives  a  dark  blue  with  the  protosalts,  and  only  a  greenish 
gray  with  the  persalts  of  iron.* 

Mercer's  Assistant  Mordant. — Mr.  John  Barnes  of 
Church,  chemist,  and  Mr.  John  Mercer  of  Oakenshaw,  cal- 
ico-printer, obtained  a  patent,  in  November,  1842,  "for  cer- 
tain improvements  in  the  manufacture  of  articles  used  in 
printing  and  dyeing  cotton,  silk,  woolen,  and  other  fibres." 
These  improvements  consist  in  the  production  of  a  new  ma- 
terial, termed  by  the  patentees  "  Assistant  Mordant  Liquor,'7 
which,  when  combined  in  certain  proportions  with  the  ordin- 
ary mordants,  renders  them  more  effective  and  useful, 
thereby  improving  the  manufacture  of  such  articles.  The 
manner  in  which  the  improvements  are  carried  into  effect  is 
as  follows  : — To  100  lbs.  avoirdupois  of  potato  starch,  add  37^ 
gallons  of  water,  12i  gallons  of  nitric  acid  of  commerce  (spe- 
cific gravity  1*300),  and  four  ounces  avoirdupois  of  oxide  of 
manganese.  The  chemical  action  which  takes  place  among 
these  ingredients  is  allowed  to  proceed  until  the  nitric  acid  is 
destroyed.  To  the  residuum  thus  produced,  add  fifty  gallons 
of  pyrolignic  acid,  and  the  compound  is  the  assistant  mordant 
liquor,  in  a  fit  state  to  add  to  the  various  mordants  used  in 
printing  and  dyeing.  The  proportion  in  which  the  assistant 
mordant  liquor  must  be  added,  to  produce  the  various  im- 
proved mordants,  will  vary  according  to  the  chemical  proper- 
ties and  nature  of  the  mordant  to  which  it  is  applied ;  but, 


*  See  Kober's  Mordant  for  Wool,  chapter  IV.  Part  IV. 


276 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


by  experience,  the  following  proportions  have  been  found  to 
produce  a  greatly  improved  article: — For  black,  take  one 
gallon  of  iron  liquor  (pyrolignate  of  iron,  well  known  in  the 
arts),  one  gallon  of  assistant  mordant  liquor,  and  one  gallon 
of  water,  either  thickened  or  not,  according  to  the  mode  in 
which  it  is  to  be  applied.  For  purple,  take  one  gallon  of  iron 
liquor,  two  gallons  of  assistant  mordant  liquor,  and  six  gal- 
lons of  water.  For  paler  purple,  one  gallon  of  iron  liquor, 
three  gallons  of  assistant  mordant  liquor,  and  twelve  gallons 
of  water ;  and  for  still  paler  purple,  one  gallon  of  iron  liquor, 
four  gallons  of  assistant  mordant  liquor,  and  from  twenty  to 
thirty  gallons  of  water.  These  improved  articles  or  mor- 
dants, are  applied,  washed,  and  dyed  in  the  usual  way.  For 
tin  or  aluminous  mordants,  the  same  rule  is  followed;  ex- 
cepting that  red  liquor,  or  other  salts  of  alum,  or  muriate  of 
tin,  or  other  salts  of  tin,  are  used,  instead  of  iron  liquor,  or 
other  salts  of  iron.  For  dyeing  silk  or  woolen,  the  assistant 
mordant  liquor  is  added  to  the  tin,  iron,  or  aluminous  mor- 
dant, either  with  or  without  coloring  matter,  in  the  same 
boiler ;  but  this,  and  other  practical  arrangements,  must  de- 
pend on  the  judgment  and  skill  of  the  operator. 

We  have  now  briefly  noticed  the  three  principal  mordants, 
namely,  ALUMINA,  TIN,  and  IRON.  There  are  others 
which,  strictly  speaking,  may  be  ranked  as  mordants,  such 
as  lead,  copper,  zinc,  manganese,  &c. ;  but  these  having  a 
more  limited  application,  we  will  prefer  noticing  them  as 
we  detail  the  method  of  dyeing  the  several  colors  for  which 
they  are  used. — (See  Appendix,  article  Mordants.) 

UNION  OF  COTTON  WITH  COLORING  MAT- 
TER.— The  effect  of  porous  bodies  in  combination  and 
decomposition,  independently  of  chemical  affinity,  has  of 
late  years,  occupied  considerable  attention ;  and  as  the  sub- 
ject is  one  of  great  interest  in  this  place,  we  cannot,  it  ap- 
pears to  us,  more  appropriately  conclude  this  chapter,  than 
by  noticing  a  few  of  the  theories  promulgated  by  the  different 
authors  who  have  investigated  the  subject. 

If  we  examine,  says  Professor  Mitscherlich,  a  piece  of 
box-wood  by  the  microscope,  we  find  it  composed  of  cells 


MORDANTS. 


277 


which  have  a  diameter  of  about  jtV otn  °f  an  inch.  Heated 
to  redness,  the  form  of  these  cells  suffers  no  change,  for  the 
particles  of  which  it  is  composed  have  no  tendency  to  run 
together  in  fusion.  A  cubic  inch  of  box-wood  charcoal 
boiled  for  some  time  in  water,  absorbed  five-eighths  of  its 
volume  of  that  liquid ;  from  which,  and  other  data,  it  was 
computed  that  the  surface  of  its  pores  was  73  square  feet. 

Saussure  observed  that  a  cubic  inch  of  box-wood  char- 
coal absorbed  35  cubic  inches  of  carbonic  acid  ;  and  as  the 
solid  part  of  the  charcoal  formed  three-eighths  of  its  bulk, 
these  35  inches  of  gas  must  have  been  condensed  into  five- 
eighths  of  an  inch,  or  56  cubic  inches  into  one,  under  the 
ordinary  pressure  of  the  atmosphere.  But  carbonic  acid 
liquifies  under  a  pressure  of  36*7  atmospheres,  and,  there- 
fore, with  a  power  of  condensation  equal  to  56  atmospheres, 
which  the  charcoal  exerted  in  Saussure's  experiment,  at 
least  one-third  of  the  gas  must  have  assumed  the  liquid  state 
within  its  pores. 

Every  other  porous  body  has  the  same  property  as  char- 
coal. Raw  silk,  linen,  thread,  the  dried  woods  of  hazel 
and  mulberry,  though  they  condense  but  a  small  quantity 
of  carbonic  acid,  take  up  from  70  to  100  times  their  bulk 
of  ammoniacal  gas  ;  and  Saxon  hydrophane,  which  is  nearly 
pure  silicia,  absorbs  64  times  its  bulk.  The  gases  enter  into 
no  combination  with  the  solid  which  absorbs  them,  for  the  air- 
pump  alone  destroys  their  union. 

The  manner  in  which  gases  are  attracted  to  the  sur- 
faces of  solid  bodies  is  very  much  like  that  which  these 
exert  on  substances  dissolved  in  water.  The  charcoal  of 
bones  has  been  long  employed  to  remove  coloring  matter 
from  the  brown  solution  of  tartaric  acid,  from  syrup  in 
the  refining  of  sugar,  and  from  a  variety  of  other  liquids 
containing  organic  substances ;  and  it  is  found  that  the 
coloring  matter  so  attracted  remains  attached  to  the  sur- 
face of  the  charcoal  without  effecting  any  change  upon  it. 
In  this  animal  charcoal  the  carbon  is  mixed  with  ten  times 
its  weight  of  phosphate  of  lime,  and  if  that  be  washed 
away  by  an  acid,  the  remaining  charcoal  has  nearly  twice 


278 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  decolorating  power  of  an  equal  weight  of  ivory-black. 
Bussy,  who  has  made  the  action  of  these  charcoals  the 
subject  of  particular  investigation,  informs  us,  that  if  ivory 
black,  after  the  extraction  of  its  earth  of  bones  by  an  acid, 
be  calcined  along  with  potash,  and  the  potash  be  after- 
wards washed  out,  or  if  blood  be  at  once  calcined  with 
carbonate  of  potash  and  washed,  the  remaining  charcoal 
has  the  power  of  decolorating  twenty  times  as  much  syrup 
as  could  be  done  by  the  original  bone  charcoal.  Animal 
charcoal  removes,  also,  lime  from  lime  water,  iodine  from 
a  solution  of  iodide  of  potassium,  and  metallic  oxides  from 
their  solutions  in  ammonia  and  caustic  potash. 

A  satisfactory  explanation  of  these  remarkable  facts  has 
yet  to  be  sought  for.  Mitscherlich  calls  the  force  which 
produces  them  an  action  of  contact,  or  attraction,  of  sur- 
face ;  and  he  calculates,  as  we  have  seen,  the  extent  of 
surface  in  proportion  to  the  mass  as  the  measure  of  the 
force  which  it  exerts.  On  the  other  hand,  Saussure  in 
his  invaluable  paper  on  the  absorption  of  gases,  informs 
us  that  charcoal  from  box-wood,  in  the  solid  state,  ab- 
sorbs twice  as  much  common  air  as  when  it  is  reduced 
to  powder.  Now  the  effect  of  pulverization  is  certainly 
not  to  diminish  the  extent  of  surface.  Saussure  accounts 
for  it  in  another  way,  and  his  explanation  seems  to  con- 
nect many  of  the  facts.  The  condensation  of  gases  in 
solid  charcoal  goes  on,  he  conceives,  in  the  narrow  cells 
of  which  it  is  composed,  and  is  analogous  to  the  rise  of 
liquids  in  capillary  tubes.  In  both,  he  says,  the  power 
appears  to  be  in  the  inverse  ratio  of  the  size  of  the  inte- 
rior diameters  of  the  pores,  or  tubes,  of  the  absorbing  bodies. 
When  we  pulverize  a  body  containing  such  cells,  we  widen, 
open,  and  destroy  them.  Fir  charcoal,  whose  cells  are  wide, 
absorbs  4£  times  its  bulk  of  common  air,  and  box-wood 
charcoal  with  smaller  pores  takes  7J.  Charcoal  from  cork, 
with  a  specific  gravity  of  only  0*1,  absorbs  no  appreciable 
quantity.  From  this  it  would  appear  that  many  of  the 
operations  of  dyeing  depend  upon  this  influence  of  the  sur- 
face, or  the  capillary  action  described  by  Saussure. 


MORDANTS. 


279 


The  microscopic  examination  of  the  fibres  of  cotton  shows 
them  to  consist  of  transparent  glassy  tubes,  which,  when  un- 
ripe, are  cylindrical,  and  in  the  mature  state  collapsed  in  the 
middle,  from  end  to  end,  giving  the  appearance  of  a  separate 
tube  on  each  side  of  the  flattened  fibre.  In  many  of  the 
operations  of  dyeing  and  calico-printing,  the  mineral  basis  of 
the  color  is  applied  to  the  cotton  in  a  state  of  solution  in  a 
volatile  acid.  This  solution  is  allowed  to  dry  upon  the  cloth, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  salt  is  decomposed,  just  as  it  would  be 
in  similar  circumstances  without  the  intervention  of  cotton. 
During  the  decomposition  of  this  salt  its  acid  escapes,  and  the 
metallic  oxide  adheres  to  the  fibre  so  firmly  as  to  resist  the 
action  of  water  applied  to  it  with  some  violence.  In  this  way 
does  acetate  of  alumina  act,  and  nearly  in  the  same  manner 
acetate  of  iron.  The  action  here  can  only  be  mechanical  on 
the  part  of  the  cotton,  and  the  adherence,  as  will  be  shown, 
confined  to  the  interior  of  the  tubes  of  which  wool  consists. 
The  metallic  oxide  permeates  these  tubes  in  a  state  of  solu- 
tion, and  it  is  only  when  its  salt  is  there  decomposed,  and  the 
oxide  precipitated  and  reduced  to  an  insoluble  powder,  that  it 
is  prevented  from  returning  through  the  fine  filter  in  which  it 
is  then  inclosed. 

When  a  piece  of  cotton,  which,  in  this  view,  consists  of 
bags  lined  inside  with  a  metallic  oxide,  is  subsequently  dyed 
with  madder,  or  log-wood,  and  becomes  thereby  red,  or  black, 
the  action  is  purely  one  of  chemical  attraction  between  the 
mineral  in  the  cloth,  and  the  organic  matter  in  the  dye  vessel, 
which  together  form  the  red  or  black  compound  that  results ; 
and  there  is  no  peculiarity  of  a  chemical  nature  from  the 
mineral  constituent  being  previously  connected  with  the  cot- 
ton. The  process  of  cleansing  in  boiling  liquids,  and  in  the 
wash-wheel,  to  which  cotton  printed  with  the  various  mor- 
dants is  subjected,  previous  to  being  maddered,  is  to  remove 
those  portions  of  metallic  oxide  which  have  been  left  outside 
the  fibres,  or  got  entangled  between  them,  and  fastened  there, 
more  or  less  firmly,  by  the  mucilage  employed  to  thicken  the 
solution. 

The  view  which  has  now  been  given,  is  in  some  respects, 


280 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  old  mechanical  theory  of  dyeing  held  by  Macquer,  Hellot, 
and  Le  Pileur  d'Apligny  before  the  time  of  Bergman.  Al- 
though unacquainted  with  the  microscopic  appearance  of  cot- 
ton, d'Apligny  argued  that  as  no  vegetable  substance  in  its 
growth  can  receive  a  juice  without  vessels  proper  for  its  circu- 
lation so  the  fibres  of  cotton  must  be  hollow  within.  And  of 
wool,  he  says,  the  sides  of  the  tubes  must  be  sieves  through- 
out their  length,  with  an  infinity  of  lateral  pores.  We  may 
gather  also  that  he  conceived  dyeing  to  consist,  first,  in  re- 
moving a  medullary  substance  contained  in  the  pores  of  the 
wool,  and  afterwards  depositing  in  them  particles  of  a  foreign 
coloring  matter.  But  Bergman,  in  his  Treatise  on  Indigo, 
in  1776,  upset  all  this,  and  attributed  to  cotton  a  power  of 
elective  attraction,  by  which  all  the  phenomena  of  dyeing 
were  referred  to  purely  chemical  principles. 

"  Macquer"  says  Mr.  Crum,  "  soon  adopted  the  chemical 
theory,  and  it  was  keenly  advanced  by  Berthollet,  who  suc- 
ceeded Dufay,  Hellot,  and  Macquer,  in  the  administration  of 
the  arts  connected  with  chemistry.  Berthollet  has  been  fol- 
lowed by  all  who  have  since  that  time  written  on  the  subject, 
but  nothing  like  evidence  has  ever  been  produced  ;  and  if  we 
only  consider  that  chemical  attraction  necessarily  involves 
combination,  atom  to  atom,  and,  consequently,  disorganiza- 
tion of  all  vegetable  structure  ;  that  cotton  wool  may  be  dyed 
without  injury  to  its  fibre,  and  that  that  fibre  remains  entire, 
when,  by  chemical  means,  its  color  has  again  been  removed, 
we  shall  find  that  the  union  of  cotton  with  coloring  matter 
must  be  accounted  for  otherwise  than  by  chemical  affinity. 
In  particular  processes,  as  we  shall  see,  attraction  is  no  doubt 
exerted ;  but  it  is  an  attraction  connected  with  structure, 
and,  therefore,  more  mechanical  than  chemical. 

"  When  we  examine  with  a  powerful  microscope  a  fibre  of 
cotton,  dyed  either  with  indigo,  with  oxide  of  iron,  chromate 
of  lead,  or  the  common  madder-red,  the  color  appears  to  be 
spread  so  uniformly  over  the  whole  fibre  that  we  cannot  de- 
cide whether  the  walls  of  the  tube  are  dyed  throughout,  or 
that  the  coloring  matter  only  lines  their  internal  surface.  But 
the  microscope  shows  that  the  collapse  which  occurs  in  raw 


MORDANTS. 


281 


and  bleached  cotton  is  very  considerably  diminished  in  the 
dyed.  The  greater  number  of  specimens  of  Turkey-red 
which  I  have  examined,  show  the  same  uniformity  of  color ; 
but  in  others  of  them,  little  oblong  balls  appear  all  along  the 
inside  of  the  tube,  of  the  fine  pink  shade  of  that  dye,  while 
the  tube  itself  is  colorless.  It  is  in  stout  cloth  dyed  in  the 
piece  that  these  rounded  masses  occur. 

"We  have  moreover  the  powerful  analogy  of  the  arrange- 
ment of  coloring  matter  in  plants,  in  support  of  this  view  of 
the  case.*  *  Cellular  tissue,'  says  Dr.  Lindley,  in  his  Intro- 
duction to  Botany,  'generally  consists  of  little  bladders,  or 
vesicles,  of  various  figures  adhering  together  in  masses.  It  is 
transparent,  and,  in  most  cases,  colorless ;  when  it  appears 
otherwise  its  color  is  caused  by  matter  contained  within  it.' 
*  *  *  *  '  The  bladders  of  cellular  tissue  are  des- 
titute of  all  perforations,  so  far  as  we  can  see,  although,  as 
they  have  the  power  of  filtering  liquids  with  rapidity,  it  is 
certain  that  they  must  abound  in  invisible  pores.' 
'The  brilliant  colors  of  vegetable  matters,  the  white,  blue, 
yellow,  scarlet,  and  other  hues  of  the  corolla,  and  the  green  of 
the  bark  and  leaves,  is  not  owing  to  any  difference  in  the  color 
of  the  cells,  but  to  the  coloring  matter  of  different  kinds 
which  they  contain.  In  the  stem  of  the  garden  balsam,  a 
single  cell  is  frequently  red  in  the  midst  of  others  which  are 
colorless.  Examine  the  red  bladder,  and  you  will  find  it  filled 
with  a  coloring  matter  of  which  the  rest  are  destitute.  The 
bright  satiny  appearance  of  many  richly  colored  flowers  de- 
pends upon  the  colorless  quality  of  the  tissue.  Thus  in  Thy- 
sanotus  fascicularis,  the  flowers  of  which  are  of  a  deep  bril- 
liant violet,  with  a  remarkably  satiny  lustre,  that  appearance 
will  be  found  to  arise  from  each  particular  cell  containing  a 
single  drop  of  coloring  fluid,  which  gleams  through  the  white 
shining  membrane  of  the  tissue,  and  produces  the  flickering 
lustre  that  is  perceived.'    Cotton  is  itself  cellular  tissue,  and 


*  See  chapter  II,  Part  I.,  and  Appendix,  articles  Color;  its  influence  on  Odors, 
and  Experiments  and  Observations  op  Light. 

36 


282 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  ligneous  basis  of  all  the  forms  of  these  vessels  has  the 
same  chemical  constitution." 

Another  class  of  processes  in  dyeing  have  been  alluded 
to,  in  which  the  action  more  resembles  chemical  affinity. 
By  which  was  meant  that  in  which  pure  cotton,  by  mere 
immersion  in  different  liquids,  withdraws  a  variety  of  sub 
stances  from  their  solution.  The  "  indigo  vat"  is  a  transpa 
rent  solution,  of  a  brownish  yellow  color,  consisting  of  deox 
idized  indigo  combined  with  lime,  and  containing  seldom 
more  than  jl^th.  of  its  weight  of  coloring  matter.*  By  merely 
dipping  cotton  in  this  liquid,  the  indigo  attaches  itself  to  it  in 
the  yellow  state,  in  quantity  proportioned  within  certain  limits 
to  the  length  of  the  immersion,  and  all  that  is  then  necessary 
to  render  it  blue  is  to  expose  it  to  the  air.  "  Here,"  says  Mr. 
Crum,  "  an  inactive  spongy  substance  exercises  a  power 
which  overcomes  chemical  affinity,  but  the  mixture,  which 
is  formed  of  cotton  and  indigo,  possesses  none  of  the  charac- 
ters of  a  chemical  compound.  We  can  only  recognize,  in  this 
action,  the  same  force,  whatever  that  may  be,  which  enables 
animal  charcoal  to  decolorate  similar  liquids.  Charcoal,  as 
we  have  also  seen,  withdraws  metallic  oxides  from  their  solu- 
tion in  alkalies.  Cotton  wool  has  the  same  power,  and  it  is 
extensively  used  as  a  means  of  dyeing  with  the  yellow  and 
red  chromates  of  lead.  If  lime  in  excess  be  added  to  sugar 
of  lead,  dissolved  in  a  considerable  quantity  of  water,  the 
lead  which  precipitates  is  redissolved  in  the  lime  water,  and 
forms  a  weak  solution  of  plumbate  of  lime.  If  a  piece  of 
cotton  be  immersed  in  this  solution  it  appropriates  the  lead, 
and  when  afterwards  washed,  and  dipped  in  a  solution  of 
chrome,  the  lead  becomes  chromate  of  lead. 

"  The  same  force  enables  cotton  to  imbibe  basic  salts  of 
iron  and  tin  by  immersion  in  certain  solutions  of  these  metals  ; 
and  many  other  examples  of  what  Berzelius  calls  a  cytalytic 
force,  in  decomposing  weak  combinations,  will  occur  to  those 
who  are  familiar  with  the  art  of  dyeing.    It  is  interesting  to 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III.;  see  also  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article  Indigo,  and 
chapter  III.,  Part.  IV. 


MORDANTS. 


283 


compare  the  amount  of  surface  exposed  by  cotton  wool,  with 
that  of  the  more  minute  divisions  of  charcoal."  Professor 
Balfour,  who  has  measured  with  great  care  the  fibres  of  va- 
rious qualities  of  wool,  says,  that  the  fibre  of  New  Orleans 
wool  varies  most  commonly  from  y^V otfl  to  2  o2o  0 th  of  an  inch 
in  diameter.  About  forty  of  these  fibres,  or  tubes,  compose  a 
thread  of  No.  38  yarn,  (thirty-eight  hanks  to  the  pound.) 
Ordinary  printing-cloth  has,  in  the  bleached  state,  493  lineal 
feet  of  fibre,  or  10*6  square  inches  of  external  surface  of  fibre 
in  a  square  inch,  which  weighs  nearly  one  grain.  It  is  easy 
to  compress  210  folds  of  this  cloth  into  the  thickness  of  one 
inch.  It  has  then  a  specific  gravity  of  0*8.  One  cubic  inch 
has  94-163  lineal  feet  of  tube,  and  16*8  feet  of  external  sur- 
face ;  or,  if  we  include  the  internal  surface,  there  are  upwards 
of  30  square  feet  of  surface  of  fibre  in  one  cubic  inch  of  com- 
pressed calico.  The  charcoal  of  box-wood  has,  as  we  have 
seen,  73  square  feet  of  surface  to  the  inch,  with  a  specific 
gravity  of  0*6. 


CHAPTER  II. 


Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid— Purity  of  Water— Chemical  knowledge  indispensable  to 
the  Dyer — Construction  of  Dye-house. 

TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID.— Upon  a  certain  spe- 
cies of  oak,  the  quercus  i?ifectoria,  there  grow  excrescences, 
which  originate  in  punctures  produced  by  the  cynips  (gall- 
wasp),  for  the  purpose  of  depositing  her  eggs.  A  kind  of 
juice  exudes  from  these  punctures,  and  gradually  forms  round 
these  ova  hard  round  bodies,  varying  in  size  from  one-fourth 
of  an  inch  to  a  whole  inch  in  diameter.  These  substances, 
from  their  resemblance  to  nuts,  and  from  their  bitter  taste, 
are  called  gall-nuts.  By  the  repeated  experiments  of  many 
excellent  chemists  upon  this  substance,  it  is  considered  to 
contain  two  peculiar  principles.  One  of  these,  a  crystalizable 
substance,  is  obtained  from  a  macerated  solution  of  galls, 
after  standing  in  the  air  for  a  long  time.  This,  from  its  pos- 
sessing many  acid  properties,  is  termed  gallic  acid.  The 
other  being  that  substance  which  combines  with  skins,  during 
the  process  of  tanning,  changing  them  into  leather,  is  termed 
tannin,  or,  from  its  having  some  acid  properties,  tannic  acid. 

From  these  two  substances  being  always  found  associated 
together  in  one  vegetable,  it  was  thought  probable  that  the 
one  might  give  rise  to  the  formation  of  the  other.  This  sup- 
position has  been  recently  verified  by  M.  Pelouze,  an  eminent 
French  chemist ;  who,  by  the  following  exceedingly  simple 
process,  extracted  tannin  from  galls  in  a  state  of  purity  : — 

To  the  vessel  represented  in  fig.  18  is  fitted,  by  means  of  a 
cork  g,  a  funnel-shaped  tube.  The  neck  c  is  to  be  kept 
corked,  air-tight,  during  the  process.  At  the  bottom  of  the 
tube  is  placed  a  little  clean  cotton,  as  shown  at  /.  Above 
this  cotton  is  placed  a  quantity  of  nut-galls  in  fine  powder, 
as  shown  at  e.    Over  this  is  poured  a  quantity  of  common 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


285 


sulphuric  ether,  sufficient  to  fill  the  rest  of  FiS- l8- 
the  tube  as  seen  at  d.  A  cork  is  then  fitted 
tightly  in  the  opening  at  the  top  of  the  tube, 
and  the  whole  set  aside.  Next  day  two 
layers  of  liquor  are  found  in  the  vessel 
one  very  light  and  liquid,  occupying  the 
upper  part,  the  other  having  a  light  amber 
color,  and  the  appearance  of  a  syrup,  occu- 
pying the  lower  part.  These  liquids  being 
poured  into  a  tube  of  the  shape  represented 
in  fig.  19,  stopping  the  bottom  with  the 
finger,  after  remaining  at  rest  for  a  few 
minutes,  the  liquids  again  separate  ;  the 
heavy  liquid  being  then  allowed  to  fall  out 
into  a  capsule,  and  the  light  retained,  this 
last  may  be  distilled  for  the  sake  of  recovering  the  ether 
The  dense  liquid  which  is  in  the  capsule  is  next  to  be  washed 
two  or  three  times  with  sulphuric  ether,  and  afterwards  dried 
in  a  stove,  or  by  very  gentle  heat ;  the  matter  left  has  a 
spongy  appearance,  very  brilliant,  and  generally  of  a  light 
yellow  tint.  This  is  tannin  in  a  state  of  purity.  By  this 
process,  from  35  to  40  per  cent,  can  be  extracted  from  nut- 
galls. 

M.  Pelouze  found  that  if  a  solution  of  tannin  be  kept 
closely  corked  from  the  atmosphere,  no  change  takes  place ; 
but  if  left  in  contact  with  oxygen,  the  tannin  undergoes  a 
change,  and  gallic  acid  is  formed.  Hence  he  concludes  that 
gallic  acid  does  not  exist  except  in  very  minute  quantity  in 
vegetables,  and  that  the  error  of  supposing  that  these  two 
acids  existed  together  in  vegetables,  arose  from  the  method 
adopted  to  procure  gallic  acid,  which  was  by  allowing  the 
macerated  vegetable  matter  to  stand  in  contact  with  the  air,, 
tili  the  gallic  acid  crystalized  from  the  solution,  this  being 
nothing  more  than  a  process  for  converting  tannin  into  gallic 
acid  by  the  absorption  of  oxygen.* 


*  M.  Le  Roger  recommends  the  following  process  for  obtaining  gallic  acid : — 
After  having  exhausted  gall-nuts  by  repeated  decoctions,  add  to  those  decoc- 
tions, concentrated,  a  solution  of  gelatine,  which  precipitates  the  tannin  :  filter  the 


286 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Fig.  19.        This  discovery  is  of  great  importance  to  the 
dyer,  as  it  points  out  the  evil  of  allowing  liquids 
which  contain  tannin,  to  stand  exposed  to  the  air 
for  any  considerable  length  of  time ;  for  although 
gallic  acid  acts  in  a  somewhat  similar  manner 
with  metallic  oxides  as   tannic  acid,   yet  the 
gallates  are  much  more  fugitive  than  the  tan- 
nates.    For  example,  if  we  precipitate  tannic  acid 
and  gallic  acid  by  a  persulphate  of  iron,  they  are 
both  dark  blue,  bordering  on  black ;  excepting  a 
slight  change  of  shade,  the  tannate  remains  per- 
manent ;  but  if  the  gallate  be  allowed  to  stand  a 
few  hours,  it  is  dissolved  in  the  supernatant  liquid, 
and  becomes  almost  colorless  ;  the  sulphuric  acid 
resumes  its  attraction  for  the  iron,  and  crystalizes 
as  a  protosulphate  (copperas)  and  the  gallic  acid 
is  partly   decomposed,   and    partly  crystalized. 
These  changes  take  place  in  a  few  minutes,  if 
the  liquor  containing  the  precipitate  be  boiled. 
Now,  if  galls,  or  what  is  now  more  commonly 
used  instead,  sumac,  be  allowed  to  stand  till  after 
fermentation  takes  place,  which  is  very  soon,  a 
great  portion  of  the  tannin  is  converted  into  gal- 
lic acid ;   and  although  the  cloth  dyed  in  sumac  that  is 
thus  altered,  should  be.  as  some  dyers  affirm,  equally  dark,  it 
will  not  be  equally  fast ;  but  from  personal  experience,  it  is 
neither  equally  dark  nor  equally  beautiful.    It  cannot  be  so 
dark,  for  gallic  acid  being  much  more  insoluble  than  tannin, 
falls  to  the  bottom  whenever  it  is  formed,  and  consequently 
leaves  the  supernatant  liquid  much  weaker  in  its  dyeing 
properties. 

More  recent  discoveries  have  shown  that  tannin  is  con- 
vertible into  gallic  acid,  by  other  and  much  more  rapid 
means  than  being  left  to  absorb  oxygen ;  these  are  by  the 


liquid,  add  very  pure  animal  charcoal,  and  boil  for  eight  or  ten  minutes ;  then 
filter  it  again,  and  by  evaporation  and  cooling,  silky  and  perfectly  white  crystals 
of  gallic  acid  are  obtained.  Gall-nuts  of  the  first  quality  afford,  by  this  process,  a 
quarter  of  their  weight  of  acid. 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID.  287 

common  processes  of  inducing  fermentation.     It  is  well 
known  that  fermentation  is  simply  a  derangement  of  the 
elements  of  certain  complex  compounds,  and  the  arrange- 
ment of  these  elements  in  different  positions  and  proportions, 
giving  rise  to  new  and  altogether  different  compounds  of  a 
more  simple  nature,  that  is,  having  a  smaller  number  of  ele- 
ments.   The  primary  compounds  are  formed  under  the  un- 
known influence  of  the  vital  principle ;  but  whenever  this 
principle  is  withdrawn,  they  seem  but  passively  to  retain 
their  chemical  conditions.*    The  attraction  of  their  elements 
seems  too  weak  to  enable  them  to  resist  any  marked  change 
of  circumstances.    Even  a  slight  elevation  of  temperature  is 
sufficient  to  overpower  their  affinities  and  induce  change. 
As  in  the  case  of  fermentation,  if  they  are  brought  into  con- 
tact with  a  body  which  is  in  the  act  of  derangement,  that 
body  excites  the  same  derangement  in  them,  and  the  equi- 
librium being  disturbed,  the  elements  are  left  to  arrange 
themselves  according  to  their  different  attractions.     If,  for 
example,  we  dissolve  a  little  sugar  of  grapes,  which  is  com- 
posed of  12  carbon,  12  hydrogen,  and  12  oxygen,  in  a  little 
water,  and  raise  the  solution  to  a  temperature  of  about  80° 
fah. ;  and  if  to  this  we  add  a  little  yeast,  which  is  a  sub- 
stance whose  atoms  are  in  the  act  of  transposition ;  the  yeast 
does  not  combine  chemically  with  the  sugar,  but  it  commu- 
nicates to  it  by  contact  the  action  of  transposition,  and  there- 
by deranges  the  classification  which  the  atoms  had  assumed 
to  form  sugar  ;  and  the  atomic  elements  being  thus  set  at 
liberty,  begin  to  arrange  themselves  differently :  every  three 
atoms  of  the  hydrogen  combine  with  two  of  the  carbon  and 
one  of  the  oxygen,  forming  four  atoms  of  alcohol.    The  re- 
maining eight  atoms  of  oxygen  unite  with  the  remaining 
four  of  carbon  in  the  relation  of  one  to  two,  forming  four 
atoms  of  carbonic  acid  gas.    Thus  the  whole  sugar  is  con- 
verted into  two  different  substances,  of  which  the  yeast  forms 
no  part.    It  only  acts  the  part  of  a  bold  revolutionizer,  break- 
ing up  existing  compositions,  that  new  ones  may  be  formed 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Fermentation. 


288 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


from  their  elements.  Now  tannin  is  found  to  undergo  the 
same  sort  of  change  as  the  sugar,  when  brought  into  contact 
with  certain  substances*,  and  one  of  the  new  compounds 
formed  from  this  transposition,  is  gallic  acid.  M.  Antoine 
has  indeed  directly  shown,  that  a  very  small  quantity  of 
nutgalls  is  capable  of  converting  a  large  quantity  of  tan- 
nin into  gallic  acid.  The  following  are  some  of  the  experi- 
ments which  he  made  to  ascertain  under  what  influence  this 
change  is  operated.  "  I  used,"  he  says,  "  nutgalls  exhausted 
by  ether  as  a  ferment,  and  this  I  put  in  contact  with  the  so- 
lution of  tannin,  which  served  as  a  liquor  of  comparison,  or 
type  liquor. 

"  On  the  27th  of  August,  1840,  I  took  10  grs.  of  nutgalls 
exhausted  by  ether,  5  grs.  of  tannin,  and  110  grs.  of  water ; 
the  type  liquor  consisted  of  110  grs.  of  water,  and  5  grs.  of 
tannin.  I  kept  these  liquors  in  flasks  covered  with  paper7 
and  perforated  with  holes,  until  the  21st  of  September ;  and 
as  I  then  wished  to  ascertain  the  state  of  the  liquors,  I  took 
one  grain  of  each,  and  added  an  excess  of  sulphate  of  qui- 
nine,* (a  substance  which  precipitates  tannin).  I  obtained 
no  precipitate  from  that  containing  the  nutgalls,  the  type  li- 
quor, on  the  contrary,  gave  an  abundant  precipitate.  I  did 
not  expect  so  good  a  result.  I  multiplied  my  experiments, 
and  as  the  following  corroborate  the  preceding,  it  will  be  seen 
that  a  small  quantity  of  nutgalls  is  capable  of  converting  15 
grs.  of  tannin  into  gallic  acid. 

"On  the  23d  of  September,  I  put  into  a  wide-mouthed 

*  An  alkaline  base  obtained  from  yellow  bark ;  the  Cinchona  cordifolia.  This 
substance,  combined  with  sulphuric  acid,  forms  the  sulphate  of  quinia,  which  is 
now  so  extensively  used  as  a  medicine,  and  as  a  substitute  for  the  various  forms  of 
Peruvian  bark.  To  obtain  quinia,  bruised  yellow  bark  is  boiled  in  repeated  por- 
tions of  water,  acidulated  by  sulphuric  acid,  till  all  its  soluble  matters  are  extract- 
ed ;  a  little  excess  of  quicklime  is  then  added  to  the  strained  decoction,  and  the 
precipitate  which  is  formed  is  collected,  washed,  and  carefully  dried ;  it  is  then 
digested  in  alcohol,  which  takes  up  the  quinia,  and  from  which  it  may  be  obtained 
in  the  form  of  a  yellowish  uncrystalizable  substance  by  careful  evaporation.  It  is 
dissolved  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  and  the  sulphate  of  quinine,  or  quinia,  crystal- 
izes  from  its  concentrated  solution  in  fine  silky  prisms,  which  effloresce  on  ex- 
posure to  air.  Sulphate  of  quinia  is  barely  soluble  in  water,  and  intensely  bitter. 
It  is  administered  as  a  tonic  and  febrifuge  in  doses  of  from  one  to  five  or  six  grains. 


TANNIN  AND   GALLIC  ACID. 


289 


flask  5  grs.  of  tannin,  5  of  nutgalls  exhausted  by  ether,  and 
100  grs.  of  distilled  water,  and  I  exposed  it  to  the  air  until 
the  7th  of  November.  Into  a  second  flask,  to  the  same 
quantity  of  water  and  nutgalls,  I  added  8  grs.  of  tannin,  and 
to  a  third,  15  grs.  of  tannin.  On  the  7th  of  November,  I 
precipitated  the  tannin  from  5  grs.  of  each  of  these  liquors, 
and  I  obtained  exactly  the  same  weight  of  tannate  of  quinine 
from  each.  These  experiments  appeared  to  me  very  curious, 
inasmuch  as  even  15  grs.  of  tannin  under  the  influence  of  5 
grs.  of  nutgalls,  exhausted  by  ether,  convert  in  a  very  short 
time  as  large  a  quantity  of  tannin.  Finally,  two  other  ex- 
periments made  with  5  grs.  of  tannin,  128  grs.  of  water,  and 
5  grs.  of  nutgalls  exhausted  by  ether,  gave  me,  after  a  con- 
tact of  a  month,  gr.  of  tannate  of  quinine,  whilst  two  other 
liquors  prepared  with  the  same  proportions  of  water  and  tan- 
nin without  any  nutgalls,  yielded  T\  gr.  of  that  salt.  These 
four  liquors  were  prepared  in  the  same  day,  and  were  ex- 
posed to  the  same  influences." 

This  author  also  shows  that  galls  have  the  same  property 
as  yeast  in  exciting  fermentation  in  sugar  for  the  production 
of  alcohol,  thereby  proving,  should  additional  proof  be  want- 
ing, that  galls  contain  within  themselves  a  substance  capable 
of  producing  fermentation  and  converting  tannin  into  gallic 
acid.  Now,  just  in  proportion  as  gallic  acid  is  inferior  to 
tannin  in  its  dyeing  properties,  will  be  the  extent  of  the  evil 
of  allowing  liquors  which  contain  tannin,  and  which  depend 
upon  it  for  their  dyeing  properties,  to  stand  till  fermentation 
begins.  In  some  liquors  this  commences  in  the  course  of 
three  or  four  days  ;  much,  however,  depends  upon  the  tem- 
perature. 

But  it  may  be  asked,  that  although  galls  possess  within 
them  the  property  of  a  ferment ;  does  sumac,  which  has 
in  many  operations  superseded  the  use  of  galls,  possess 
the  same  property?  Whether  sumac  possesses  the  prop- 
erty of  exciting  fermentation  in  other  substances,  has  not 
yet  been  determined ;  but  from  a  number  of  experiments 
upon  the  action  of  various  substances  upon  tannin,  it  would 
seem  either  to  induce  or  facilitate  fermentation ;  and  further 

37 


290 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


we  venture  to  say  that  the  tannin  in  sumac  is  more  readily 
converted  into  gallic  acid  than  the  tannin  of  gall-nuts.  If 
the  liquor  of  galls  be  allowed  to  stand  exposed'  to  the  air, 
it  requires  a  considerable  time  before  its  tannin  is  converted 
into  gallic  acid,  but  there  are  a  number  of  substances  which, 
if  put  into  it,  causes  the  formation  of  gallic  acid  to  proceed 
much  more  quickly.  Amongst  others,  the  tartaric  and  malic 
acids  possess  this  property  in  a  high  degree.*  Now,  sumac 
according  to  some  recent  analysis  contains  a  great  quantity 
of  malic  acid,  which,  were  we  allowed  to  reason  from  anal 
ogy  in  chemical  science,  places  it  under  very  favorable  cir- 
cumstances for  fermentation.  Indeed  in  certain  seasons  of 
the  year,  we  have  known  it  to  ferment  in  forty-eight  hours. 
Whether  this  fermentation  was  induced  first  by  the  tannin 
or  the  coloring  matter  which  it  contains — for  sumac  contains 
a  distinct  coloring  matter — we  cannot  determine.  A  very 
short  time  however  makes  it  lose  its  coloring  property,  but 
as  we  shall  see  in  the  next  paragraph,  the  addition  of  certain 
acids  has  the  same  effect  upon  this  coloring  matter,  so  that 
the  losing  of  color  may  be  the  effect  of  acids  formed  in 
the  liquor,  as  well  as  the  immediate  effect  of  fermentation. 

It  may  also  be  asked,  seeing  that  the  introduction  of 
certain  substances  facilitates  fermentation,  is  there  no  sub- 
stance which  can  be  introduced  without  destroying  the  dye- 
ing properties  of  the  substance  which  can  prevent  fermen- 
tation. The  answer  to  this  may  be  given  in  the  language 
and  experiments  of  the  author  last  quoted,  M.  Antoine, 
"I  made,"  he  says,  "some  new  experiments  to  ascertain  the 
action  of  certain  other  agents  on  gallic  fermentation.  With 
the  following  liquids  prepared  in  the  same  proportions  (110 
of  water,  and  20  of  nutgalls  both  by  weight),  and  to  which 
I  had  added  to  the  first  20  drops  of  pyroligneous  acid  (red 
liquor),  to  the  second  12  drops  of  sulphuric  acid  (vitriol),  to 
the  third  12  drops  of  nitric  acid  (aquafortis),  and  to  the  fourth 
12  drops  of  hydrochloric  acid  (spirit  of  salt).    I  obtained 


*  See  chaptrr  V„  Part  I.,  articles  Tartaric  and  Malic  Acid. 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


29T 


the  following  results,  precipitating  the  tannin  by  sulphate 
of  quinine : — 

Type  liquor  gave 
Pyroligneous  acid  . 
Sulphuric  . 
Nitric  . 
Hydrochloric 

,l  These  results  appeared  to  me  to  be  very  curious.  Indeed 
where  no  agent  could  modify  the  progress  of  the  phenome- 
non, the  tannin  was  almost  entirely  converted  into  gallic 
acid,  whilst  in  the  liquors  containing  the  above-mentioned 
bodies,  the  progress  of  fermentation  is  arrested,  and  very 
little  gallic  acid  formed." 

Although  these  results  are  very  curious  as  regards  certain 
chemical  phenomena,  the  use  of  these  acids  as  preventatives 
to  fermentation  is  not  advisable  in  a  practical  point  of  view, 
except  when  the  sumac  (for  the  remarks  refer  mutually 
to  sumac  and  galls)  is  to  be  kept  for  a  long  time,  and  a 
possibility  of  using  it  for  light  shades ;  for  dark  grounds, 
sumac  with  acid,  does  not  give  the  same  depth  of  shade, 
and  as  the  goods  require  to  be  washed  when  the  acid  is 
used,  previous  to  putting  them  into  the  iron,  there  is  a 
waste  of  time  without  an  equivalent  advantage.  But  with 
light  shades  such  as  drabs,  grays,  &c,  the  addition  of  a 
little  sulphuric  acid  to  the  sumac,  makes  a  superior  and 
uniform  color.  When  we  say  superior  color,  we  do  not 
mean  the  yellow  coloring  matter  which  new  boiled  sumac 
possesses^  for  sulphuric  acid  destroys  the  color.  If  pure 
white  cloth  be  put  through  sumac  at  a  temperature  of 
140°,  light  straw  or  lint  color  is  produced ;  but  if  sulphuric 
acid  be  put  in  with  the  sumac,  the  color  on  the  cloth  is  in- 
appreciable. When  the  goods  are  washed  from  this,  and 
put  through  a  very  weak  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron  (cop- 
peras) the  color  which  is  produced  is  much  sweeter,  appear- 
ing fully  and  evenly  combined  with  the  fabric.  When  no 
acid  is  used,  as  is  frequently  the  case,  the  color  often  ap- 
pears in  grains  upon  the  surface  of  the  cloth.    When  sumac 


0*60  centigrammes 
0-35 

0-59  " 
0-55  " 
0-50 


292 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


or  galls  are  used,  it  is  best  for  all  purposes  that  they  be 
fresh,  and  newly  boiled  or  macerated. 

The  following  table  abridged  from  Brande's  Manual  of 
Chemistry,  will  give  an  idea  of  the  action  of  some  metallic 
salts  upon  a  solution  of  galls  or  sumac. 


NAMES  OF  SALTS  USED. 

Protochloride  of  manganese,  . 

Protosulphate  of  iron,  (copperas) 

Persulphate  of  iron, 

Chloride  of  zinc,  (muriate  of  zinc) 

Protochloride  of  tin, 

Perchloride  of  tin, 

Sulphate  of  copper,  (blue  stone) 

Nitrate  of  copper,  . 

Nitrate  of  lead, 

Tartrate  of  antimony  and  potash, 
Tartrate  of  bismuth  and  potash, 
Sulphate  of  uranium, 
Sulphate  of  nickel, 
Protonitrate  of  mercury, 


COLOR  OP  PRECIPITATES. 

dirty  yellow, 
purple  tint, 
black. 

dirty  yellow, 
straw  color, 
fawn  color, 
yellow  brown 
grass  green, 
dingy  yellow, 
straw  color. 

copious  yellow  or  orange. 

blue  black. 

green. 

yellow. 

cal  inference  from  some  of 


In  attempting  to  draw  a  practi 
these  results,  we  would  for  example  conclude  that  persul- 
phate of  iron  is  much  better  adapted  for  dyeing  blacks  than 
protosulphate,  as  the  former  is  mentioned  as  producing  a 
deep  black,  while  the  latter  gives  only  a  purple  tint.  It  is 
much  to  be  regretted  that  in  making  out  these  tables,  care  is 
not  taken  to  give  the  results  in  all  their  bearings.  In  the 
forms  in  which  we  meet  them  in  chemical  books,  if  they  do 
not  tend  to  lead  practical  men  astray,  they  at  least  give  a 
lower  idea  of  the  labors  of  scientific  chemists.  The  results 
of  the  two  salts  mentioned  are  correct,  looking  at  the  results 
the  instant  the  mixtures  are  made ;  but  in  the  course  of 
twenty  minutes  the  black  from  the  persulphate  becomes  a 
brownish  slate,  whereas  the  purple  tint  of  the  protosulphate 
changes  during  the  same  time  to  a  deep  black ;  and  these 
changes  continue  till  the  former  has  become  a  light  yellowish 
slate,  and  the  latter  a  perfect  ink  black. 

When  trying  the  difference  of  effect  produced  by  the  per- 
sulphate and  protosulphate  of  iron  upon  pure  tannin  and 
gallic  acid,  it  may  further  be  observed,  that  the  changes  pro- 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


293 


duced  by  tannin  are  somewhat  similar  to  those  which  occur 
in  a  solution  of  galls.  With  gallic  acid  the  persulphate 
gives  at  first  a  black  precipitate,  not  so  dark  as  the  tannate, 
but  in  a  few  minutes  it  changes  to  an  olive,  and  continues 
changing  till  it  becomes  almost  colorless.  With  the  proto- 
sulphate,  at  first  the  color  is  scarcely  visible,  but  after  a  few 
hours'  exposure,  it  assumes  a  rich  violet.  From  these  facts, 
it  may  be  concluded,  that  tannin  is  muck  superior  to  gallic 
acid  as  a  dyeing  agent  for  black  ;  besides,  it  is  more  in- 
soluble. 

The  following  Table,  from  Ure's  Dictionary  of  Arts,  &c.  shows  the  quantity  of 
extractive  matter  and  tan  in  100  parts  of  the  several  substances: — 


Substances. 


White  inner  bark  of  old  ? 
oak    -  -  \ 

Do.  young  oak  - 
Do.  Spanish  chestnut 
Do.  Leicester  willow 

Colored  or  middle  bark  ? 
of  oak   -  \ 
Do.  Spanish  chestnut 
Do.  Leicester  willow 

Entire  bark  of  oak 
Do.  Spanish  chestnut 
Do.  Leicester  willow 
Do.  Elm  - 
Do.  Common  willow 

Sicilian  sumac 

Malaga  sumac 

Souchong  tea 

Green  tea 

Bombay  catechue 

Bengal  catechue  - 

Nut-galls  - 

Bark  of  oak,  cut  in  winter 
Do.  Beech  - 
Do.  Elder  - 
Do.  Plum-tree  - 

Bark  of  the  trunk  of; 
willow   -      -  S 
Do.  Sycamore  - 

Bark  of  Birch 


O 

u  . 
S  in 

gj 

GO  bD 


30 


109 


boughs,  31 
158 


!5 


21 


4G 


Substances. 


Bark  of  Cherry-tree  - 
Do.  Sallow  - 
Do.  Poplar 
Do.  Hazel 
Do.  Ash  - 

Do.  trunk  of  Spanish  j 

chestnut      -      -  \ 
Do.  Smooth  oak     -  : 
Do.  Oak,  cut  in  spring  • 
Root  of  Tormentil  - 
Cornus  sanguinea  of  Can-  j 

ada      ...  i 
Bark  of  Alder  - 
Do.  Apricot 
Do.  Pomegranate  - 
Do.  Cornish  cherry-tree 
Do.  Weeping  willow 
Do.  Bohemian  olive 
Do.  Tan    shrub    with  j 

myrtle  leaves      -  < 
Do.  Virginian  sumac 
Do.  Green  oak 
Do.  Service-tree 
Do.  Rose    chestnut  of  j 

America      -      -  I 
Do.  Rose  chestnut  - 
Do.  Rose   chestnut  of  j 

Carolina  -  -  < 
Do.  Sumac  of  Carolina  • 


e  ts 


24 


44 


PURITY  OF  WATER.— Another  thing  which  modifies 
the  results  of  the  foregoing  experiments,  in  their  application 
to  dyeing,  is  the  quality  of  the  water  used.  If  the  experi- 
ments be  performed  with  distilled  water,  it  will  be  found  on 
repeating  them  with  common  spring  water,  that  one  half  of 
the  quantity  of  stuffs  will  give  the  same  depth  of  color  ;  and 


294  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

that  the  colors,  in  this  instance,  have  more  of  a  purple  hue, 
and  are  more  permanent.  This  may  be  illustrated  by  the 
following  very  simple  experiment: — ■ 

Thus,  take  two  glass  jars  of  equal  size,  fill  them  half  full  with  distilled  water,  and 
add  an  equal  quantity  of  a  solution  of  galls,  or  sumac;  put  into  each  an  equal  number 
of  drops  of  a  solution  of  protosulphate  of  iron  (copperas) ;  the  change  of  color  is 
scarcely  perceptible.  But  fill  up  one  to  the  brim  with  spring  water,  and  it  almost 
instantly  becomes  a  dark  reddish  black.  Allow  both  jars  to  stand  for  an  hour,  the 
solution  with  the  distilled  water  will  have  become  a  deep  violet,  while  the  other, 
notwithstanding  the  double  quantity  of  water,  is  so  dark  that  no  light  is  transmit- 
ted ;  and  it  will  require  one-half  more  water  to  reduce  it  to  the  same  shade  as  the 
other,  but  still  retaining  more  of  the  reddish  hue — which,  by  the  way,  makes  it 
superior  for  black.  It  will  also  be  found  to  be  more  insoluble,  and  requiring  a 
greater  proportion  of  acid  to  decompose  it. 

If  soft,  or  filtered  river  water,  be  used  instead  of  distilled 
water,  the  distinction  is  not  so  great,  but  still  the  difference  is 
equal  to  one  half.  The  best  water  which  the  writer  has  ex- 
perienced for  dyeing  black,  and  other  saddened  colors*  gave 
by  qualitative  analysis,  the  following  results  : — 

Carbonic  acid,  lime,  silica,  iron,  sulphuric  acid,  and  muriatic  acid. 

The  whole  solid  contents  did  not  exceed  one  grain  in  a 
fluid  ounce.  These  ingredients  probably  existed  in  the 
water  as  sulphate  of  lime,  muriate  of  lime,  and  carbonate  of 
iron.  The  iron  was  in  very  small  proportion  ;  the  carbonic 
acid  and  lime  greatest.  Now  a  dyer,  learning  his  trade  in  a 
work  where  such  a  spring  was  used,  could  not  fail  to  become 
a  successful  dyer  of  all  saddened  colors  ;  but  were  he  taken 
from  this  work  to  another  where  soft,  filtered  water  was  used, 
what  would  be  the  result?  When  he  attempted  to  dye  a 
black  with  the  same  quantity  of  dye-stuff  he  formerly  used, 
he  would  only  produce  a  dark  slate  color ;  and  if  he  wished 
to  obtain  a  slate  color,  he  would  produce  a  gray.f    In  this 


*  A  technical  name  for  colors  that  are  darkened  by  sulphate  of  iron,  which  in- 
cludes drabs,  fawns,  grays,  slates,  some  kinds  of  browns,  blacks,  &c. 

t  Mr.  William  Partridge,  an  English  dyer  and  dye-stuff  dealer,  of  34  Cliff  street, 
New  York,  in  a  Treatise  on  dyeing,  published  by  him  in  1834,  very  gravely  re- 
marks as  follows  : — "I  had  no  conception  when  I  left  England  that  water  could 
have  had  so  great  an  effect  in  the  production  of  color  as  I  have  since  found  it  to 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


295 


dilemma,  the  dyer  adds  stuff  till  he  comes  to  the  desired 
shade ;  but  fancy  dyes,  bolstered  up  with  stuffs,  are  not 
so  pretty  ;  besides,  the  employer,  in  consequence  of  this  extra 
stuff  must  either  submit  to  a  loss,  or  discharge  the  dyer, 
who,  no  doubt  considering  himself  ill-used,  talks  loudly 
of  his  ability  in  dyeing  such  colors,  and  offers  to  prove  that 


possess.  I  have  practised  the  art  in  this  country  in  four  states,  and  have  found 
that  given  proportions  of  the  same  description  of  ingredients,  would  not  produce 
the  same  color  in  any  two ;  there  would  in  each  be  a  considerable  variation  in  the 
hue  and  body  of  the  color.  I  shall  endeavor  to  draw  such  deductions  from  the 
facts  that  have  been  developed  during  my  practice  in  both  countries,  as  will  carry 
conviction  to  every  unprejudiced  mind ;  and  I  hope  my  opinion  will  be  entitled 
to  that  consideration  which  the  importance  of  the  subject  demands.  For  confirma- 
tion of  the  fact,  that  waters  differ  so  materially  as  to  cause  a  change  in  the  hue 
and  body  of  colors,  I  will  mention  two  circumstances  that  have  come  under  my 
notice,  one  of  recent  occurrence,  the  other  of  many  years  standing.  The  latter 
occurred  to  Mr.  John  Parish,  an  eminent  dyer  in  the  west  of  England.  He  com- 
menced dyeing  in  Gloucestershire,  and  could  not  succeed ;  he  then  began  in 
Wiltshire,  and  for  thirty  years  was  the  most  eminent  dyer  in  the  country.  After 
which  he  commenced  again  in  Gloucestershire,  and  in  a  few  years  lost  all  he  made 
in  Wiltshire,  from  an  inability  to  make  good  colors."  Again,  "a  dyer  from  Glou- 
cestershire," says  our  author,  "  being  determined  to  ascertain  the  difference  in  dyeing 
black  in  Wiltshire,  had  a  blacking  of  broadcloth  prepared  in  Gloucestershire,  and 
the  ingredients  he  used  there  weighed  out.  He  took  with  him  the  cloth  and  ingredi- 
ents, and  made  a  dyeing  at  Trowbridge,  Wiltshire,  with  the  same  ingredients  he 
had  always  made  good  bright  colors  in  Gloucestershire,  but  the  color  produced  in 
Wiltshire  was  a  dead, flat,  brownish,  poor  black" 

After  a  few  observations  of  a  similar  nature,  Mr.  Partridge  further  observes,  "  I 
have  made  two  or  three  attempts  to  substitute  caustic  and  sub-carbonated  lime 
water,  in  place  of  the  natural;  having  previously  inferred  that  a  similar  effect 
would  be  produced.  I  found  it  to  raise  the  color  of  the  logwood,  yet  for  want  of 
sufficient  experience  in  its  use  to  fix  a  proper  standard,  I  have  never  been  able, 
successfully,  to  imitate  the  natural  water.  I  have  discovered,  however,  that  when 
too  much  was  used,  it  had  an  injurious  effect,  making  the  logwood  tincture  of  a 
pale  Prussian  blue  color."  "The  most  important  deduction,"  says  he,  "to  be 
drawn  from  these  facts  is,  that  dyers  ought  never  to  expect  that  recipes  obtained 
from  other  countries,  or  from  distant  parts  of  their  own,  should  produce  exactly  the 
same  colors  when  used  by  them,  as  they  have  with  others.  And  also,  that  for  dyers 
to  become  eminent,  they  must  be  stationary,  they  must  continue  to  practice  in  one 
situation,  and  with  one  kind  of  water,  that  by  these  means  alone,  can  they  be  ex- 
pected to  obtain  perfection  in  the  art.  It  is,  nevertheless,  useful  to  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  practice  of  others,  and  more  particularly  with  the  science  of 
chemistry,  on  which  the  art  is  founded ;  but  they  must  not  implicitly  rely  on  any- 
thing but  their  own  practice." — Partridge  on  Dyeing,  p.  28. 


296 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  fault  is  not  in  him  but  in  the  water.  Were  this  wholly  a 
supposed  case,  we  would  pause  here  and  make  an  apology 
to  our  brethren  for  these  remarks  ;  but  not  being  so,  we 
will  rather  endeavor  to  show  that  the  fault  is  the  dyer's. 
Dyeing  being  an  art  wholly  dependent  upon  chemistry  for  its 
development  and  successful  practice,  he  who  practices  it 
without  studying  chemistry,  is  like  a  boy  learning  to  repeat 
a  number  of  choice  sentences  from  an  author,  without  know- 
ing his  letters.  Had  the  dyer  alluded  to  known  the  princi- 
ples of  chemistry,  so  far  as  they  are  applicable  to  his  trade, 
he  would,  on  finding  that  the  same  quantity  of  stuffs  did  not 
yield  the  same  results,  have  examined  the  water  to  discover 
where  lay  the  difference,  and  in  this  particular  case  he  would 
find,  that  instead  of  adding  sumac,  copperas,  and  logwood 
extra,  to  get  a  good  black,  a  little  chalk,  and  hydrous  gyp- 
sum, added  to  the  water,  would  so  qualify  it  as  to  render  it 
equally  effective  with  that  to  which  he  had  been  accus- 
tomed. 

Having  now  pointed  out  some  of  the  qualifications  neces- 
sary for  a  good  dyer,  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  these  qualifica- 
tions have  been  much  neglected.  Chemistry  has  got  far 
ahead,  and  in  many  instances  can  scarcely  be  identified  in  his 
processes — while  obsolete  theories  cling  most  tenaciously  to 
him.  Scientific  chemistry  is  also  much  retarded  by  his  neg- 
lect. Who  is  better  qualified  to  advance  a  science  which  de- 
pends wholly  upon  experiment,  than  the  man  whose  daily 
avocations  are  a  continued  round  of  experiments? — And  yet 
the  dyer,  for  the  want  of  a  little  observation,  and  not  taking 
advantage  of  the  inductions  of  scientific  men,  is  comparatively 
ignorant  of  chemistry  ;  and  the  theoretical  man,  for  want  of 
the  dyer's  experience,  comes  to  hasty  and  erroneous  conclu- 
sions, or  overlooks  the  niceties  requisite  for  a  successful  dye- 
ing experiment.  In  proof  of  this,  we  shall  cite  two  instan- 
ces : — "  Concentrated  nitric  acid  acts  very  strongly  upon  iron 
filings,  much  nitrous'  gas  is  disengaged  at  the  same  time. 
The  solution  is  of  a  reddish-brown  color,  and  deposits  the 
oxide  of  iron.  After  a  certain  time,  more  especially  if  the 
vessel  be  left  exposed  to  the  air,  a  diluted  nitric  acid  affords  a 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


297 


more  permanent  solution  of  iron,  of  a  greenish  color,  or  some- 
times of  a  yellow  color.  Neither  of  the  solutions  affords 
crystals."*  Now,  long  before  this  paragraph  was  written,  the 
dyers,  who  use  this  salt  in  great  quantities,  were  often  an- 
noyed by  its  crystalizing.  The  other  is  from  a  little  work 
well  adapted  for  a  beginner.t  "  Add  to  a  solution  of  sulphate 
of  indigo  an  equal  quantity  of  carbonate  of  potash ;  a  piece 
of  yellow  cloth  dipped  in  this  will  be  changed  to  green,  and  a 
piece  of  blue  litmus  paper  to  red."  Now,  every  dyer  who 
knows  anything  of  this  process,  is  aware  that  if  the  sulphate 
of  indigo  would  turn  blue  litmus  red,  it  would  not  dye  a  yel- 
low piece  green ;  for  the  acid  which  turned  the  litmus  red 
would  strip  off,  as  dyers  term  it,  the  yellow :  hence,  instead 
of  a  green,  would  result  a  dirty  blue,  which  could  not  be  dried 
without  injuring  the  cloth,  and  if  previously  washed,  the  color 
would  disappear.  Now,  a  dyer,  meeting  such  statements, 
generally  comes  to  a  wrong  conclusion :  reasoning  from  anal- 
ogy, he  sets  aside  the  valuable  researches  of  these  authors, 
because  they  have  been  unable  to  describe  the  practical  de- 
tails of  dyeing  a  particular  color,  which  none  but  a  practi- 
cal dyer  is  able  to  do.  But  such  evils  will  continue,  so  long 
as  the  practical  and  the  theoretical  man  remain  two  persons. 
— (See  chapter  II.,  Part  I.,  and  chapter  II.,  Part  V.,  article 
Olive.) 

CONSTRUCTION  OF  DYE-HOUSE. — It  may  be  re- 
garded, says  Berthollet,  as  a  general  principle,  that  processes 
performed  in  a  great  manufactory,  are  more  advantageous 
than  those  which  are  insulated,  since  from  the  subdivision  of 
labor,  each  workman,  occupied  with  a  single  object,  acquires 
celerity  and  perfection  in  his  employment,  and  since  every 
thing  being  concatenated,  each  portion  of  the  work  is  carried 
forward  without  loss  of  time  ;  this  principle  should  be  applied 
to  dyeing  for  a  peculiar  reason,  because  the  residuum  of  one 
process  can  frequently  serve  for  another.  A  bath  which  is 
found  to  be  too  much  exhausted  for  one  color,  or  even  for 
what  is  called  the  suites,  or  gradations  of  color,  may  either 


*  Ure's  Dictionary  of  Chemistry.  t  Griffin's  Chemical  Recreations. 

38 


298 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


give  a  ground  to  other  dye-stuffs,  or  form  a  new  bath,  by  mix- 
ing other  ingredients  with  it. 

It  is  essential  to  a  dye-house,  that  it  be  placed  where  there 
is  an  abundance  of  good  water  to  supply  it,  and  plenty  of  fall 
to  carry  off  the  spent  dye-stuff.  The  floor  of  the  dye-house, 
says  Mr.  Cooper,  should  be  of  hard  brick  closely  set,  with 
drains  and  channels  to  carry  off  waste  liquor.  If  not  of 
brick,  it  should  be  of  stone,  or  of  hard  cement,  or  leached 
ashes  ;  so  as  to  admit  of  being  accurately  washed.  The  light 
should  be  good  and  in  plenty,  without  letting  in  too  much 
sunshine :  it  should  come  from  above ;  that  is,  the  bottoms  of 
the  windows  should  be  twelve  or  eighteen  inches  above  the 
rim  of  the  coppers :  the  shade  of  color  is  thus  most  advan- 
tageously discerned.  There  should  be  conveniences  for  car- 
rying off  steam.  The  coppers,  except  one  for  logwood  which 
may  be  of  iron,  should  be  of  brass  or  copper,  and  no  iron  nails 
be  used  about  them.  They  should  have  covers  to  be  used  oc 
casionally.  The  scarlet  dye-house  should  be  separate,  and 
the  vessels  in  it  should  be  of  tin,  or  tinned  copper.*  It  would 
be  better  also,  says  Berthollet,  if  the  black  and  blue  dyes  were 
at  a  distance  from  the  other  colors :  want  of  extreme  cleanli- 
ness, is  a  want  that  occasions  great  waste  and  expense,  which 
ultimately  falls  on  the  dyer.  Poles  should  be  fixed  in  the 
walls  over  the  copper  for  the  skeins  and  hanks  to  hang  on, 
that  the  dye-liquor  dripping  from  them,  may  fall  back  into  the 
copper. 

Ladles,  wooden  shovels,  barrels,  ladders  and  barrows,  nets 
and  crosses,  for  wool,  winces  or  reels  for  piece  work,  shovels 
for  lime,  &c,  should  be  provided  of  course.  The  ladders,  bar- 
rows, and  winces,  should  be  kept  as  much  as  possible  to  the 
use  of  one  kind  of  color,  and  scrupulously  clean.  Where 
there  is  room  and  convenience,  the  implements  of  the  establish- 
ment should  occupy  their  own  quarter :  the  scarlet  dye-house, 
the  blue  dye-house,  and  the  black  dye-house,  should  not  be 
intermingled  with  the  apparatus  used  for  other  colors.  Scar 


*  As  tin  is  absolutely  necessary  in  the  scarlet  dye,  it  is  much  better  to  have  the 
cauldron  made  of  this  metal,  which  infallibly  contributes  to  the  beauty  of  the 
color. 


TANNIN  AND  GALLIC  ACID. 


299 


let,  and  blue,  should  be  alone.  The  black  may  be  contig- 
uous to  the  drabs,  olives,  bottle  greens,  or  to  the  chocolates, 
but  should  not  be  next  to  the  pinks  or  yellows.*  It  is  also 
desirable  for  the  advancement  of  the  art,  as  well  as  that  of 
science,  that  a  small  place  should  be  reserved,  in  which  the 
apparatus  necessary  for  the  common  experiments  of  chemis- 
try and  the  trial  of  dyes  may  be  collected. 


*  A  well-planned  dye-house  should  be  an  oblong  gallery,  well  lighted,  with  a 
stream  of  water  flowing  along  in  an  open  conduit  in  the  middle  line,  a  series  of 
dash-wheels  arranged  against  the  wall,  at  one  side,  and  of  dyeing  coppers,  fur- 
nished with  self-acting  reels  against  the  other.  In  such  a  gallery,  the  washing 
may  be  done  either  by  hand,  by  the  rinsing  machine,  or  by  the  dash-wheel,  ac- 
cording to  the  quality  of  the  dye,  and  the  texture  of  the  stuffs,  (see  Dyeing  and 
Calico  Printing).  And  they  may  be  stripped  of  the  water  either  by  the  jack  and 
pin,  by  the  squeezing  roller,  or  by  the  press.  Wooden  pins  are  placed  in  some 
dye-houses  on  each  side  of  the  wash  cistern  or  pool.  They  are  somewhat  conical, 
1$  feet  high,  3^  inches  in  diameter  at  the  base,  1^  at  the  top,  are  fixed  firmly  up- 
right, and  at  a  level  of  about  three  feet  above  the  bottom  of  the  cistern,  so  as  to  be 
handy  for  the  workmen. —  Ure. 


CHAPTER  III. 


OF  RED. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  RED  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Madder  Red — Adrianople,  or  Turkey-Red — French, 
German,  and  Scotch  Processes,  with  the  Recent  Improvements — Imitation  Tur- 
key-Red— Barwood,  Improved  method  of  Dyeing  with — Brazil-wood,  Superior 
Processes  of  Dyeing  with — Safflower  Pink. 

Preliminary  observations. — Intense  red  is  the  most  pow- 
erful of  colors  in  regard  to  its  effect  upon  the  eye,  and  in  the 
coloring  of  nature  it  occurs  rarely  and  in  small  portions.  Its 
effect  in  art  when  covering  any  large  space,  is  gorgeous  and 
powerful ;  and  on  all  occasions  the  predominance  of  red  is 
ostentatious,  and  congenial  to  the  most  primitive  ideas  of 
grandeur. 

The  hues  with  which  it  melodises  in  series  are,  of  course, 
orange  and  purple,  being  its  combinations  with  the  other  two 
primaries  (blue  and  yellow).  Its  contrasting  color  is  green,  a 
compound  of  yellow  and  blue,  in  the  proportion  of  three  yel- 
low to  eight  blue.  Red  is  decidedly  a  warm  color,  and  to  a 
certain  extent,  communicates  this  quality  to  every  hue  into 
which  it  enters.  This  effect  of  warmth  is  most  apparent  in 
its  combinations  with  yellow :  for  in  those  with  blue  it  be- 
comes more  cool  and  retiring.  From  the  medial  situation  of 
red,  and  from  its  power  in  subduing  the  effect  of  such  colors 
as  enter,  in  minute  proportion,  into  combination  with  it,  its 
name  is  very  indiscriminately  applied.  The  first  decided 
hue  produced,  in  its  approach  towards  yellow,  is  scarlet ;  and, 
in  its  approach  towards  purple,  it  produces  the  most  splendid 
of  all  hues  of  this  description,  crimson.  But  before  arriving 
at  either  of  these  understood  colors,  there  are  an  immense 
variety  of  hues,  to  all  of  which  the  general  term  red  is  com 


RED. 


301 


monly  applied.  It  is  not  easy  to  describe  what  is  meant  by 
pure  red ;  probably  the  most  intense  geranium  color  is  the 
nearest  approximation. 

The  tertiary  in  which  red  predominates  is  russet,  a  medial 
hue  between  purple  and  orange,  and  consequently  having-  a 
double  occurrence  of  red  in  its  composition;  therefore,  it  is 
the  most  positive  and  warm  of  the  neutral  colors.  It  is  of 
great  power  and  value  in  all  the  deep  parts  of  any  warm- 
toned  arrangement,  as  a  contrasting  color  to  the  deep  hues  of 
green,  necessarily  brought  in  as  relieving  colors.  The  semi- 
neutral  marone  is  the  next  understood  hue  in  its  descent  to 
black.  This  hue  is  the  most  useful  of  all  semi-neutrals  in 
such  arrangements  as  are  best  adapted  for  patterns  of  car- 
pets, and  other  variously -colored  manufactures.  It  is  deep 
and  clear,  and  although  allied  to  red,  is  sufficiently  cool  to 
admit  of  its  being  used  as  the  deepest  shade  in  such  arrange- 
ments as  have  a  predominance  of  cool-toned  colors. 

From  the  positive  nature  of  red,  there  is  no  color  that 
requires  more  toning  and  management.  The  effect  of  red 
individually  being  striking  and  powerful,  it  has,  like  yellow, 
been  too  indiscriminately  employed.  We  have  only  to  look 
at  nature  for  the  proper  use  of  this  color.  We  shall  there 
see  that  red  seldom  appears  in  its  full  intensity,  and  when 
it  does  so,  it  is  at  that  season  when  its  effect  is  balanced 
and  neutralized  by  the  general  verdure  which  clothes  the 
earth.  Red,  however,  in  nature  as  in  art,  is  indispensable 
in  producing,  by  combination,  that  variety  of  hue  so  essential 
to  the  effect  of  every  arrangement  of  colors.  The  landscape 
painter  knows  well  that  neither  sky,  water,  nor  foliage,  can 
be  successfully  imitated  without  the  introduction  of  this  color. 

Pure  red,  and  its  various  hues  of  scarlet,  are  too  violent 
and  obtrusive  to  be  used  in  large  masses,  either  in  decoration 
or  in  any  general  arrangements  of  colors  upon  a  piece  of 
manufacture,  unless  under  very  peculiar  circumstances.  It 
forms,  however,  like  orange,  an  excellent  leading  color  or 
key-note.  On  all  such  occasions  its  contrasting  color,  green, 
ought  to  be  neutralized  by  being  brought  in  tone  towards 
olive:  bright  green,  if  employed  at  all,  should  be  used  in 


302 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


very  small  quantities.  The  tertiaries  should  generally  be 
those  in  which  red  predominates,  and  blue  subordinate  to 
yellow,  and  these  relieved  by  deep  rich  tones  of  green. 

Crimson  is,  of  all  the  hues  arising  from  the  mellowing 
of  the  primary  red,  the  most  gorgeous  and  useful  as  a  leading 
color.  The  green  which  relieves  it  best  is  that  which  ap- 
proaches the  citron  hue.  This  color,  from  the  splendid  and 
rich  effect  which  it  produces,  and  from  its  being,  of  all  the 
hues  of  red,  the  most  cool  and  mellow,  is  much  used  in 
internal  decoration.  It  is  also,  when  of  a  proper  shade 
and  tone,  an  excellent  ground  for  pictures,  and  associates 
well  with  gilding.  This  latter  quality  proceeds  from  the 
crimson  partaking,  in  a  small  degree,  of  the  property  of 
purple  as  well  as  red — the  one  being  the  contrasting  color 
to  yellow,  and  the  other  the  melodising  color  to  orange; 
the  color  of  gold  in  its  lights  and  shadows  producing  these 
two. 

From  crimson  proceeds  that  beautiful  series  of  tints*  called 
pinks  or  rose  colors,  which  are  so  essential  and  effective  as 
heightening  reds  in  all  cool-toned  arrangements. 

There  are  various  other  denominations  of  red.  Syme 
has  eighteen  altogether ;  but  they  are  all,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  purest  color,  compounds  of  two  or  all  of  the  pri- 
maries. 

Amongst  flowers,  red  is  a  predominating  color,  often  in 
great  purity,  as  in  the  flower  of  the  verbena,  the  geranium, 
and  many  others.  Its  various  gradations  of  tint  are  nowhere 
more  beautifully  and  delicately  displayed  than  in  the  ordin- 
ary varieties  of  the  rose ;  and  it  is  often  beautifully  blended 
with  its  contrasting  color  green,  in  the  productions  of  the 
orchard. 

Red  sometimes  occurs  in  considerable  purity  in  the  natu- 
ral productions  of  the  mineral  kingdom,  both  in  transparent 


*  By  tint  is  meant  every  gradation  of  a  color  in  lightness,  from  its  most  perfect 
or  intense  state  up  to  white.  This  applies  also  to  every  one  of  the  hues,  for  they 
are,  as  well  as  the  colors,  capable  of  every  state  of  dilution.  The  variety  of  tint  is 
therefore  incalculably  greater  than  that  of  hue.  By  shade  is  meant  every  grada 
tion  of  a  color  or  hue  in  depth,  from  its  perfect  state  down  to  black. 


RED. 


303 


and  opaque  substances.  Of  the  former,  the  oriental  ruby- 
is  the  most  conspicuous,  and  of  the  latter,  the  mineral  called 
cinnabar,  a  native  sulphuret  of  mercury,  (see  Appendix,  arti- 
cles Cinnabar  and  Vermilion,)  but,  perhaps,  the  nearest 
approximation  to  pure  red  in  nature,  is  the  production  of 
the  animal  kingdom,  the  cochineal.  Many  of  the  feathered 
tribes,  also,  exhibit  it  in  much  perfection  and  beauty  in 
the  plumage  with  which  nature  has  adorned  them.  But 
it  would  be  an  endless  task,  and  apart  from  the  object  of 
this  work,  to  go  into  minute  details  regarding  the  infinite 
varieties  of  color  which  the  botanist,  the  naturalist,  and 
the  mineralogist,  find  amongst  the  objects  of  their  study. 
Our  purpose  is,  however,  to  attempt  to  classify,  arrange^ 
and  define  colors,  in  order  to  enable  those  who  are  follow* 
ing  such  branches  of  study,  as  well  as  the  artist,  mora 
easily  to  comprehend  the  nature  of  each  particular  hue- 
tint,  and  shade,  and  the  relation  that  it  bears  to  the  pri- 
mary elements  of  light,  darkness,  and  color.  By  this 
knowledge,  a  description  may  be  given  where  no  proper 
name  can  be  applied,  and  every  compound  become  as  well 
understood  as  the  primary  elements,  yellow,  red,  and  blue. 

In  art,  the  purest  red  that  can  be  produced  is  carmine, 
a  pigment  made  from  cochineal,  (see  Vegetable  Coloring 
Substances,  chapter  III.,  Part  I.)  In  sunshine  and  in  arti- 
ficial light,  red  is  more  brilliant  than  in  daylight,  and  is 
most  deteriorated  when  viewed  in  a  northern  aspect,  when 
the  sky  is  clear. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  RED/— Although  the  dye- 


*  Scarlet. — This  color  is  very  seldom  dyed  on  cotton.  Dr.  Berkenhout's  flimsy 
process,  containing  nothing  new,  may  be  found  in  Bancroft's  treatise  on  the  art  of 
dyeing,  vol.  i.,  p.  398.  If  this  color  be  wanted,  says  Mr.  Cooper,  it  may  be  dyed 
in  the  following  manner: — 1.  Boil  the  bleached  cotton  in  a  preparation  of  two 
ounces  of  alum  per  pound  of  cotton,  for  an  hour  and  a  half.  2.  Take  it  out,  drain 
it,  and  without  rinsing  run  it  through  water  for  an  hour,  at  1]0°  F.,  in  which 
fresh  blood  has  been  mixed,  in  the  proportion  of  half  a  pint  of  blood  to  a  pound 
of  cotton.  Then  drain  and  rinse  it.  3.  Dye  with  an  ounce  of  quercitron,  to  the 
pound  of  goods ;  wash  well  and  dry.  4.  Now  rinse  the  goods  for  an  hour  and  a 
half  through  a  boiling  preparation,  consisting  of  sufficient  quantity  of  water,  mixed 
with  the  common  composition  for  the  scarlet  dye :  drain  it,  rinse  it  slightly.  Then 


304 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ing  of  cottons  is  mostly  practised  as  a  part  of  the  process  of 
calico-printing,  nevertheless,  the  chemical  principles  involved 
in  the  different  operations  are  precisely  the  same,  whether 
the  cloth  is  merely  dyed  and  finished  in  that  state,  or  both 
printed  and  dyed.  The  principal  substances  used  for  produ- 
cing red  on  cotton,  are  Madder,  Barwood,  and  Brazil-wood.* 

MADDER  RED.— Madder,  in  the  hands  of  a  skilful 
dyer,  can  be  made  to  produce  almost  any  color  (of  which  red 
is  the  principal,)  by  varying  the  mordants,  and  the  colors  pro- 
duced are  all  characterised  by  a  degree  of  permanency  which 
no  other  dyewood  possesses  ;  but  the  operations  for  obtaining 
them  are  generally  tedious.  Much  skill  is  also  requisite  for 
obtaining  and  applying  the  proper  mordants  for  madder. 

The  first  step  in  dyeing  full  and  permanent  colors  by  mad- 
der, is  clearing  the  cotton  well  with  alkaline  leys,  and  then  in 
oily  liquor,  in  which  sheep's  dung  is  macerated ;  this  opera- 
tion is  repeated  several  times,  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
colors  wanted.  Many  attempts  have  been  made  to  substi- 
tute different  salts  for  the  sheep's  dung,  and  in  some  cases 
with  considerable  success  ;  but  the  accounts  given  of  these  ex- 
periments we  have  always  considered  a  little  exaggerated. 
There  appears  to  be  some  peculiar  influence  in  the  dung  to 
fulfil  the  purpose  intended,  that  no  substitute  we  have  seen 
tried  can  equal.  After  the  goods  are  considered  sufficiently 
prepared  by  the  alternate  washings  and  macerations,  they 
are,  what  is  termed  in  the  language  of  the  dye-house,  gall- 
— that  is  steeped,  or  wrought  for  some  time  in  a  decoc- 
tion of  galls,  or  what  is  now  more  commonly  used,  sumac, 
when  they  are  ready  to  receive  the  proper  mordant  for  the 


dye  it  in  the  common  finishing  or  cochineal  or  scarlet  bath,  and  wash  it  well.  If 
too  red,  it  may  be  run  through  a  very  dilute  preparation  liquor.  If  too  yellow, 
run  it  through  hot  water,  with  about  an  ounce  of  the  whitest  soap  dissolved  in  it, 
to  twenty  pounds  of  cloth:  or  the  quantity  of  cochineal  may  be  increased.  A 
second  blood  liquor  after  the  tin  preparation,  would,  no  doubt,  be  of  use.  The 
blood  certainly  makes  the  color  more  permanent,  but  scarlet  by  cochineal,  is  fugi- 
tive upon  cotton  at  the  best. 

*  The  other  substances  for  producing  red  on  cotton,  will  be  detailed  in  their 
proper  place  as  we  proceed  with  the  subject. 


RED. 


305 


color  required.  The  various  mordants  used,  are  the  follow- 
ing :— 

1.  Acetate  of  alumina.  2.  Acetate  of  iron,  or  sometimes  a  mixture  of  these  two 
for  different  shades  of  brown.  3.  Chloride  of  tin.  4.  Acetate  of  lead,*  and,  for 
Tariety  of  shades,  the  ammoniate  and  acetate  of  copper. 

In  dyeing  with  madder  by  an  iron  mordant,  it  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  that  the  iron  be  applied  in  the  state  of  a 
protosalt.  We  have  already  alluded  tot  an  easy  method  of 
applying  the  iron  salt  in  this  state  by  adding  a  piece  of  clean 
iron  to  the  liquor  some  time  previous  to  using,  by  which 
means  any  persalt  is  reduced  to  the  state  of  a  protosalt ;  but 
it  requires  great  caution  and  dexterity  to  preserve  it  in  such 
a  state  when  applied  to  the  cloth  for  such  a  length  of  time, 
as  from  the  mordanting  to  the  immersion  in  the  dye-bath,  t 

We  may  here  also  observe  that  the  proper  proportion  of 
water  to  madder,  in  the  bath,  is  from  ten  to  twelve  quarts  to 
the  pound  of  madder ;  a  very  concentrated  decoction  does 
not  give  out  the  color  freely. 

ADRIANOPLE  OR  TURKEY-RED.— This  is  the  most 
complicated  and  tedious  operation  in  the  art  of  dyeing  ;  but 
it  produces  the  fastest  color  which  is  known.  This  dye  was 
discovered  in  India,  and  remained  long  a  process  peculiar  to 
that  county.  It  was  afterwards  practised  in  other  parts  of 
Asia  and  Greece.  In  1747,  Ferquet  and  Goudard  brought 
Greek  dyers  into  France,  and  established  near  Rouen,  and  in 
Languedoc,  Turkey-red  dye-works.  In  1765,  the  French 
government,  convinced  of  the  importance  of  the  business, 
caused  the  processes  to  be  published.  In  1808,  Reber,  at 
Mariakirch,  furnished  the  finest  yarns  of  this  dye,  and  M. 
Kcechlin  became  celebrated  for  his  Turkey-red  cloth.  This 
gentleman  has  immortalised  his  name  in  the  annals  of  calico- 
printing,  by  a  discovery  which  he  made  in  1811.  It  consists 
in  printing  upon  Turkey-red,  or  any  dyed  color,  some  pow- 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Acetate  of  Lead. 

t  See  Iron,  chapter  I.  of  this  Part ;  see  also  chapter  II.  of  this  Part,  article 
Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid, 
t  See  chapter  III.  Part  I.,  article  Madder,  and  chapter  I.  Part  VI. 

39 


306 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


erful  acid,  and  then  immersing  the  cloth  in  a  solution  of 
chloride  of  lime.  Neither  of  these  agents  singly  affects  the 
color,  but  those  parts  which  have  received  the  acid,  on  being 
plunged  in  chloride  of  lime,  are  speedily  deprived  of  their  dye, 
and  made  white  by  the  acid  of  the  liberated  chlorine.  This 
is  one  of  the  beautiful  facts  in  the  chemistry  of  calico- 
printing. 

For  this  process  a  patent  was  obtained  in  England,  by  Mr. 
James  Thomson,  of  Primrose,  near  Clitheroe,  in  the  year 
1813  ;  and  the  same  gentleman,  in  1816,  took  out  a  second 
patent  for  a  very  useful  and  happy  modification  of  the  prin- 
ciple of  the  former  one,  namely,  for  combining  with  the  acid 
some  mordant,  or  metallic  oxide,  capable,  after  the  colors 
were  removed,  of  having  imparted  to  it  some  other  color. 
This  laid  the  foundation  of  that  series  of  processes,  in  which 
the  chromic  acid  and  its  combinations  have  since  been  em- 
ployed with  such  great  success. 

The  first  person  who  established,  in  Great  Britain,  a  fac- 
tory for  dyeing  Adrianople  or  Turkey-red,  was  M.  Papillon, 
who,  in  the  year  1790,  obtained  a  premium  from  the  Com- 
missioners and  Trustees  for  Manufactures  in  Scotland,  for 
communicating  the  details  of  it  to  Dr.  Black,  on  condition 
that  it  should  not  be  divulged  for  a  certain  term  of  years. 
The  term  being  expired,  the  process  was  published.  It  re- 
sembles pretty  closely  the  method  described  by  M.  Berthollet 
in  his  "  Elements  of  Dyeing."*  Those  who  wish  to  compare 
them,  will  find  M.  Papillon's  in  the  18th  volume  of  Tilloch's 
Magazine,  p.  43. 

THE  GERMAN  PROCESS  IMPROVED,  according  to 
Dingier,  consists  of  the  following  operations :  mordant  of  an 
oily  soap  or  a  soapy  liniment,  hard  drying ;  galling,  alkaline 
bath,  drying,  steeping,  rinsing,  drying ;  galling,  drying, 
aluming,  drying,  steeping  in  water  containing  chalk,  rinsing ; 
maddering,  airing,  rinsing;  brightening  with  an  alkaline 
boil,  and  afterwards  in  a  bath  containing  salt  of  tin ;  then 


Vol.  a  p.  122. 


RED. 


30? 


washing  and  drying.*  The  yarn  must  be  first  well  worked 
in  a  bath  of  sheep's  dung  and  oil,  compounded  as  follows  : — 

25  pounds  of  sheep's  dung  are  to  be  bruised  in  a  solution  of  pure  caustic  potash 
of  hydrometer  strength  3°,  and  the  mixed  liquor  is  to  be  passed  through  a  sieve. 
Two  pounds  of  fine  oil  should  now  be  poured  into  16  pounds  of  this  ley,  after 
which  30  pounds  of  coarse  oil  are  to  be  added,  with  agitation  for  £  of  an  hour. 
An  additional  4  pounds  of  hot  ley  are  to  be  well  stirred  in,  till  the  whole  is  homo- 
geneous. This  proportion  of  mordant  is  sufficient  for  100  pounds  of  cotton  yarn, 
for  90  pounds  of  unbleached  or  100  pounds  of  bleached  cotton  goods.  The  goods, 
after  being  well  wrung  out,  are  to  be  laid  in  a  chest  and  covered  with  a  lid  loaded 
with  weights,  in  which  state  they  should  remain  for  five  days.  At  the  end  of  24 
hours,  the  cotton  becomes  hot  with  fermentation,  gets  imbued  with  the  mordant, 
and  the  oil  becomes  rapidly  altered.  The  goods  are  next  exposed  freely  to  the  air 
during  the  day,  and  in  the  evening  they  are  dried  in  a  hot  chamber,  exposed  to  a 
temperature  of  158°  F.,  for  6  or  8  hours,  which  promotes  the  oxidizement  of 
the  oil. 

The  goods  are  now  passed  the  second  time  through  a 
soapy  oil  mordant  similar  to  the  first,  then  dried  in  the  air  by 
day,  and  in  the  hot  stove  by  night.  The  third  and  fourth 
oil-soap  steeps  are  given  in  the  same  way,  but  without  the 
dung.  The  fifth  steep  is  composed  of  a  ley  at  2°,  after  which 
the  goods  must  also  be  dried.  Indeed,  from  the  first  to  the 
fourth  steep,  the  cotton  should  be  put  each  time  into  a  cham- 
ber heated  to  145°  F.  for  twelve  or  fifteen  hours,  and  during 
eighteen  hours  after  the  fifth  steep.  The  uncombined  oil 
must,  in  the  next  place,  be  removed,  which  is  effected  by 
steeping  the  goods  for  six  hours  in  a  very  weak  alkaline  ley. 
After  rinsing  and  wringing,  they  are  dried  in  the  air,  and 
then  put  into  the  hot  stove. 

The  goods  must  now  be  galled  in  a  bath  formed  of  thirty- 
six  pounds  of  Sicilian  sumac,  boiled  for  three  hours  in  260 
pounds  of  water,  filtered,  the  residuum  is  treated  with  190 
fresh  pounds  of  water.  This  decoction  is  heated  with  12 
pounds  of  pounded  galls,  to  the  boiling  point,  allowed  to 
cool  during  the  night,  and  used  next  morning  as  hot  as  the 
hand  can  bear ;  the  goods  being  well  worked  through  it. 


*  Linen  takes  the  color  of  madder  with  more  difficulty  than  cotton ;  but  the  pro- 
cesses which  succeed  best  with  the  one,  are  also  preferable  for  the  other.  The 
difference,  however,  is  not  very  great  when  the  yam  is  slightly  twisted. 


308 


DYEING   AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


They  are  again  dried  in  the  air,  and  afterwards  placed  in  a 
stove  and  moderately  heated.  They  are  next  passed  through 
a  tepid  alum  bath,  containing  a  little  chalk  ;  left  afterwards 
in  a  heap  during  the  night,  dried  in  the  air,  and  next  in  the 
stove.  The  dry  goods  are  finally  passed  through  hot  water 
containing  a  little  chalk,  wrung  out,  rinsed,  and  then  mad- 
dered.  For  dyeing  the  following  is  the  order  to  be  ob- 
served : — 

The  copper  being  filled  with  water,  the  fire  is  kindled,  and  an  ounce  and  a  half 
of  chalk  is  added  for  every  pound  of  madder ;  a  pound  and  a  quarter  of  madder 
being  taken  for  every  pound  of  cotton  yarn.  The  goods  are  now  passed  through 
the  bath,  so  that  they  penetrate  to  near  its  bottom.  The  fire  must  be  so  regulated, 
that  the  copper  will  begin  to  boil  in  the  course  of  from  2|  to  3  hours ;  and  the 
ebullition  must  be  continued  for  an  hour ;  after  which  the  yarn  is  aired  and  rinsed. 
Cloth  should  be  put  into  the  dye-bath  when  its  temperature  is  77°  and  winced  at 
a  heat  of  from  100°  to  122°  during  the  first  hour;  at  167°  during  the  second;  and 
at  the  boiling  point  when  the  third  hour  begins.  It  is  to  be  kept  boiling  for  half 
an  hour ;  so  that  the  maddering  lasts  four  hours. 

After  being  dyed,  the  goods  are  washed,  pressed,  and  sub- 
jected to  a  soapy  alkaline  bath  at  a  high  heat,  in  a  close  boiler, 
by  which  the  dun  parts  of  the  galls  and  the  madder  are  dis- 
solved away,  and  the  red  color  remains  in  all  its  lustre.  This 
operation  is  called  brightening.  It  is  repeated  in  a  similar 
liquor,  to  which  some  muriate  of  tin  is  added  for  the  purpose 
of  enlivening  the  color  and  giving  it  a  rosy  tint.*  Last  of  all 
the  goods  are  rinsed  and  dried  in  the  shade. 

Cottons  which  have  not  been  suitably  worked  in  the  pre- 
parations, come  out  of  the  maddering  with  a  thin  color,  some- 
times of  a  brick  hue.  Before  brightening  these  cottons,  they 
should  get  new  oil  baths,  and  the  operation  repeated  as  if 
they  had  not  been  dyed.  The  brightening  and  rosing  will 
have  a  little  less  power  than  in  ordinary  cases. 

THE  ELBERFELD  PROCESS. — The  manipulations  for 
100  lbs.  of  yarn,  according  to  this  process,  are  as  follows  : — 

1.  Cleansing  the  cotton  by  boiling  it  for  four  hours  m  a 
weak  alkaline  bath,t  cooling  and  rinsing. 

*  See  chapters  I.,  V.,  and  VI.,  Part  VI. 

t  The  alkaline  ley  occasions  a  greater  separation  in  the  particles  of  the  oil,  by 
which  it  combines  more  closely  with  the  fabric  of  the  cloth. — Ure. 


RED. 


309 


2.  Working  it  thoroughly,  four  times  in  a  steep,  consisting 
of  300  pounds  of  water,  fifteen  pounds  of  potash,  1  pailful  of 
sheep's  dung,*  and  12^  pounds  of  olive  oil,  in  which  it  should 
remain  during  the  night.  Next  day  it  is  drained  for  an  hour, 
wrung  out  and  dried.  This  treatment  with  the  dung  steep, 
and  drying,  is  repeated  three  times. 

3.  It  is  now  worked  in  a  bath  containing  120  quarts  of 
water,  18  pounds  of  potash,  and  6  quarts  of  olive  oil ;  then 
wrung  out  and  dried.    This  steep  is  also  repeated  4  times. 

4.  Steeping  for  a  night  in  the  river  is  the  next  process ;  a 
slight  rinsing  without  wringing,  and  drying  in  the  air. 

5.  Bath  made  of  a  warm  decoction  (100°  F.)  of  sumac  and 
galls,  in  which  the  goods  remain  during  the  night ;  they  are 
then  strongly  wrung,  and  dried  in  the  air. 

6.  Aluming  with  addition  of  potash  and  chalk  ;  wringing ; 
working  it  well  through  this  bath,  where  it  is  left  during  the 
night. 

7.  Draining,  and  strong  rinsing  the  following  day ;  piling 
up  in  a  water  cistern. 

8.  Rinsing  repeated  next  day,  and  steeping  in  water  to  re- 
move any  excess  of  alum ;  the  goods  continue  in  the  water 
till  they  are  taken  to  the  dyeing-bath. 

9.  The  maddering  is  made  with  the  addition  of  blood,  su- 
mac, and  galls ;  the  bark  is  brought  to  the  boil  in  1  hour 
and  f ,  and  kept  boiling  for  half  an  hour. 

10.  The  yarn  is  rinsed,  dried,  boiled  from  24  to  36  hours  in 
a  covered  copper,  with  an  oily  alkaline  liquid ;  then  rinsed 
twice,  laid  for  two  days  in  clear  water,  and  dried. 

11.  Finally,  the  greatest  brightness  is  obtained  by  boiling 
for  three  or  four  hours  in  a  soap  bath,  containing  muriate  of 
tin ;  after  which  the  yarn  is  rinsed  twice,  steeped  in  water, 
and  dried. 

According  to  Berthollet,  a  great  variety  of  shades  may  be 


*  The  sheep's  dung  in  the  first  immersions  may  serve  as  a  covering  or  great 
coat,  to  keep  the  goods  moist  for  a  considerable  time,  that  they  may  more  fully  im- 
bibe the  liquor,  by  preventing  the  evaporation  from  being  too  quick  in  the  great 
heat  to  which  they  are  exposed. — Elements  of  the  Art  of  Dyeing,  Vol.  II.  p.  392. 


310 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


procured,  by  giving  another  color  to  the  goods  before  passing 
them  through  the  oil  bath. 

Pallas  relates  in  the  Journal  of  Petersburg  for  1776,  that 
the  Armenians,  whom  the  troubles  of  Persia  obliged  to  retire 
to  Astracan,  dye  Turkey  red  by  impregnating  cotton  with 
fish  oil,  and  drying  it  alternately  during  seven  days  ;  that 
they  have  remarked  that  the  other  oils  would  not  succeed ; 
that  they  did  not  take  indifferently  the  oil  of  every  fish,  but 
chose  that  of  certain  fish,  which  becomes  milky  whenever  an 
alkaline  solution  is  mixed  with  it.  After  these  repeated  im- 
pregnations and  desiccations,  they  wash  the  cotton,  and  dry 
it.  They  give  it  then  an  astringent  bath,  into  which  they 
put  a  little  alum.  They  dye  it  in  a  bath  of  madder,  with  the 
addition  of  calf's  blood.  Lastly,  they  digest  it  for  24  hours  in 
a  solution  of  soda. 

"  If  cotton  dyed  with  madder,  by  any  process  whatsoever, 
be  boiled  for  some  minutes  in  soap  water,  it  assumes  a  rose 
color.  If  it  be  then  squeezed,  a  fat  matter  is  expressed  from 
it,  which  has  the  color  of  Adrianople  red,  and  which  fixes  it- 
self on  white  cotton.  CEtinger  observed,  in  1764,*  that  oil 
had  the  property  of  dissolving  the  coloring  part  of  the  Adrian- 
ople red,  so  that,  if  it  be  moistened  with  oil,  its  color  is  com- 
municable to  white  cotton  when  rubbed  with  it  for  some  time. 
He  thence  concluded,  that  oil  must  enter  into  the  preparation 
of  the  Adrianople  red  ;  and  the  Abbe  Mazeas  proved  long  ago, 
that  oil  was  indispensable  to  this  dye.t 

"  The  species  of  madder  employed  has  a  great  influence  on 
the  color.  It  appears  indispensable,  for  procuring  a  color 
equal  to  the  Adrianople  red,  to  employ  the  kind  called  lizari, 
(fine  madder.)t 

"  We  should  distinguish,  in  madder-dyed  cotton,  between 
the  faculty  of  resisting,  for  a  long  time,  the  action  of  the  air, 
and  that  of  resisting  alkalies  and  soap.    The  last  can  be  ob- 

*  Dissertatio  de  viribus  radicis  rubia?  tinctorum  antiarchiticis  a  virtute  ossa  ani- 
malium  vivorum  tingendi  non  pendendibus. 

t  Recherches  sur  la  cause  physique  de  1' Adherence  de  la  Couleur  Rouge,  &c. — 
Mem.  des  Savons  Etrangers,  torn.  iv. 

$  See  chapter  III.  Part  I.,  article  Madder,  and  chapter  £  Part  VI. 


RED. 


311 


tained  only  by  means  of  oils  and  fats ;  but  the  first  depends 
chiefly  on  the  mordants  that  are  used,  and  the  other  manipu- 
lations."* 

Dr.  Bancroft,  in  speaking  of  the  mode  of  dyeing  this  red 
in  the  East,  says,  that  the  cotton  is  soaked  in  oil  (no  matter 
of  what  descriptiont),  during  the  night,  and  exposed  to  the 
sun  for  seven  successive  days,  rinsing  it  only  in  running 
water,  and  then  immersing  it  in  a  decoction  of  galls  and 
leaves  of  sumac  previous  to  aluming. 

Upon  the  ascertaining  of  this,  Dr.  Ure  advises  practical 
dyers  u  to  give  up  the  idea  of  animalization,  if  by  it  be  meant 
impregnating  the  cloth  with  an  animal  matter,  and  by  the 
power  of  the  microscope,  or  any  better  method,  look  for  the 
whole  truth  from  some  other  source  than  chemical  analysis." 
"  A  very  eminent  calico  manufacturer,"  says  he,  "  whom  I  con- 
sulted on  the  Turkey  red  process,  assured  me,  that  the  only 
essential  mordants  are  oil  and  alumina ;  and  that  bright  and 
fast  reds,  equal  to  any  produced  by  the  usual  complicated 
process  with  sheep's  dung,  galls,  and  blood,  may  be  obtained 
without  these  articles."t 

These  statements  of  Dr.  Ure,  are,  in  practice,  found  to  be 
erroneous,  notwithstanding  "  the  power  of  the  microscope," 
and  the  authority  of  11  the  very  eminent  calico  manufacturer" 
above  alluded  to. 

We  highly  approve  of  the  two  distinct  processes  of  animali- 
zation in  this  dye :  first  with  the  sheep's  dung,  secondly 
with  the  blood.  We  know  the  effect  is  not  only  good  but  in- 
dispensable to  the  perfection  of  the  color,  and  we  strongly 
incline  to  recommend  this  practice  to  be  extended  to  all 
madder  reds  and  colors  of  which  madder  red  is  the  basis. 

It  will  be  seen  also,  that  Messrs.  Monteith  and  Co.,  who 
may,  with  justice,  lay  claim  to  a  thorough  knowledge  of  this 
subject,  use  both  the  blood  and  the  dung  in  their  process  of 


*  Elements  of  the  Art  of  Dyeing,  Vol  II.  p.  144. 

t  Olive  oil,  hog's  lard  melted,  oil  of  sessamum,  &c.,  have  all  been  used  with  suc- 
cess.— Bancroft. 

t  Elements  of  the  Art  of  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  393.  (UrJs  Notes.) 


312 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


obtaining  this  color,  and  we  presume  their  experience  is,  at 
least,  as  extensive,  for  any  practical  purpose,  as  that  of  Dr. 
Ure. 

M.  HAUSSMAN'S  PROCESS. — He  treats  cotton  twice 
or  four  times  in  a  solution  of  aluminated  potash,  mixed  with 
a  thirty-eighth  part  of  linseed  oil.  The  solution  is  made  by 
adding  caustic  potash  to  alum.  He  dries  and  rinses  each 
time,  and  dries  after  the  last  operation.  He  then  rinses  and 
proceeds  to  the  madder  bath.  For  the  rose  color,  he  takes  a 
pound  of  madder  to  the  pound  of  cotton  ;  for  carmine  reds, 
from  two  to  three  pounds  ;  and  for  the  deepest  red,  no  less 
than  four  pounds.*  It  is  said  that  the  color  thus  obtained 
surpasses  Turkey  red. 

THE  FRENCH  PROCESS,  BY  M.  VITALIS.t—  1. 
Scouring  with  a  soda  ley,  of  1°  Baume,  to  which  there  is 
usually  added  the  remainder  of  the  whitest  preparation  bath, 
which  consists  of  oil  and  soda  with  water.  It  is  then  washed, 
wrung  out,  and  dried. 

In  the  second  operation,  he  states  that  from  25  to  30  pounds 
of  sheep's  dung  are  commonly  used  for  100  pounds  of  cotton 
yarn.  The  dung  is  first  steeped  for  some  days  in  a  ley  of 
soda,  of  8°  to  10°  B.  This  is  afterward  diluted  with  about 
500  pints  of  a  weaker  ley,  and  at  the  same  time  bruised  with 
the  hand  in  a  copper  basin,  its  bottom  being  pierced  with 


*  A  quantity  of  which  we  are  well  persuaded  nearly  half,  at  least,  is  wasted. 
We  do  not  believe  that  cotton  can  be  made  to  take  up,  per  pound,  the  coloring 
matter  of  more  than  two  pounds  of  the  best  madder.  Certainly  not  over  two  and 
a  quarter.  Economy  of  stuffs  is  the  primary  object  of  all  good  dyers,  not  only 
on  account  of  the  expense,  but  from  the  fact  also,  that  the  more  exact  the  propor- 
tion of  the  materials  to  the  hue  wanted,  the  finer  and  brighter  is  the  color  obtained, 
and  the  less  is  the  time  expended  upon  it. 

t  Berthollet,  vol.  ii.,  p.  397. 

t  From  the  following  observations,  it  appears  that  Dr.  Ure  has  abandoned  the 
notion  that  animalization  is  not  necessary  in  the  Turkey  red  process : — The  white 
bath  is  prepared  by  pouring  six  pounds  of  fat  oil  into  fifty  pints  of  soda  water,  at 
1°  or  sometimes  less,  according  as,  by  a  preliminary  trial,  the  oil  requires.  This 
bath  should  be  repeated  two,  three,  or  even  a  greater  number  of  times,  as  more  or 
less  body  is  to  be  given  to  the  color.  To  what  remains  of  the  white  bath,  and 
which  is  also  styled  avances,  about  100  pints  of  soda  ley  of  two  or  three  degrees 
are  added.    Through  this  the  cotton  is  passed  as  usual. —  Ure. 


RED. 


313 


small  holes,  The  liquor  is  then  poured  into  a  vat  containing 
five  or  six  pounds  of  fat  oil  (Gallipoli),  and  the  whole  are 
well  mixed  The  cotton  is  washed  in  this,  and  the  hanks  of 
yarn  are  thsn  stretched  on  poles  in  the  open  air,  and  turned 
from  time  to  time,  so  as  to  make  it  dry  equally.  After 
receiving  thus  a  certain  degree  of  desiccation,  it  is  carried 
into  the  drying-house,  which  is  heated  to  50°  Reaumur  (144° 
Fahrenheit),  where  it  loses  the  remainder  of  its  moisture, 
which  would  have  prevented  it  from  combining  with  the 
other  mordants,  which  it  is  afterward  to  receive.  What  is 
left  of  the  bath  is  called  avances,  and  is  added  to  the  follow- 
ing bath.  Two,  or  even  three  dung  baths  are  given,  when  it  is 
wished  to  have  very  rich  colors.  When  the  dung  baths  have 
been  given,*  it  should  not  be  left  lying  in  heaps  for  any 
length  of  time,  lest  it  take  fire  ;  an  accident  which  has  occa- 
sionally happened. 

The  cotton  is  steeped  for  five  or  six  hours  in  a  tepid  solu- 
tion of  soda,  of  1°  at  most,  drained,  sprinkled  with  water, 
and  at  the  end  of  an  hour,  washed,  hank  by  hank,  to  purge 
it  entirely  from  the  oil.  What  remains  of  the  water  of 
degraissage  (half  bleaching)  serves  for  the  scouring  or  first 
operation. 

For  100  pounds  of  cotton,  from  20  to  25  pounds  of  galls 
must  be  taken,  which  are  bruised  and  boiled  in  100  pints 
of  water,  till  they  crumble  easily  between  the  fingers.  The 
galling  may  be  done  at  two  operations,  dividing  the  galls 
between  them,  which  is  thought  to  give  a  richer  and  more 
uniform  color. 

The  aluming  of  100  pounds  of  cotton  requires  from  25  to 
30  pounds  of  pure  alum,  that  is,  alum  entirely  free  from 
ferruginous  salts.  The  alum  should  be  dissolved  without 
boiling,  in  about  100  pints  of  river  or  rain  water.  When 
the  alum  is  dissolved,  there  is  to  be  poured  in  a  solution 
of  soda,  made  with  the  sixteenth  part  of  the  weight  of  the 


*  The  white  baths,  which  follow  those  of  dung,  co-operate  with  the  latter,  giving 
to  the  cotton  the  oily  principle,  for  which  cotton  is  known  to  have  a  great  affinity, 
and  which,  moreover,  possesses  the  property  of  combining  with  the  coloring  matter. 
—  Ure. 

40 


314 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


alum.  A  second  portion  of  the  alkaline  solution  must  not 
be  poured  in  till  the  effervescence  caused  by  the  first  portion 
has  entirely  ceased — and  so  in  succession.  The  bath  of 
saturated  alum  being  merely  tepid,  the  cotton  is  passed 
through  it,  as  in  the  gall  bath,  so  as  to  impregnate  it 
well,  and  is  dried  with  the  precautions  recommended  above. 
The  dyers  who  gall  twice,  alum  also  twice,  for  like  reasons.* 

For  25  pounds  of  cotton,  25  pints  of  blood  are  prescribed, 
and  400  pints  of  water.  Whenever  the  bath  begins  to 
warm,  50  pounds  of  madder  are  diffused  through  it ;  though 
sometimes  the  maddering  is  given  at  two  operations,  by 
dividing  it  into  two  equal  parts. 

The  brightening  bath  is  prepared,  for  100  pounds  of  cotton, 
with  from  four  to  five  pounds  of  rich  oil,  six  pounds  of  Mar- 
seilles white  soap,  and  600  litres  of  soda  water  of  2°  B. 
The  rosing  is  given  with  solution  of  tin,  mixed  with  soap 
water. 

A  good  Adrianople  red  supports  for  ten  minutes  the  action 
of  nitric  acid  at  18°  of  the  areometer,  without  suffering  any 
sensible  change.  By  letting  it  remain  longer  in  the  acid, 
or  by  employing  a  stronger  one,  the  cotton  becomes  more 
and  more  orange,  and  finally  loses  its  color.  The  simple 
madder  reds,  exposed  to  the  same  test,  disappear  in  less  than 
three  minutes. 

PROCESS  OF  MESSRS.  MONTEITH  &  Co.— The 
calico  is  taken  as  it  comes  from  the  loom,  without  bleaching ; 
it  is  then  subjected  to  a  fermentative  steep  for  twenty-four 
hours,  like  that  preliminary  to  bleaching,  after  which  it  is 
washed  at  the  dash- wheel.  It  is  next  boiled  in  a  ley,  con- 
taining about  one  pound  of  soda  crystals  for  twelve  pounds 
of  cloth.  The  oiling  process  now  commences,  and  is  as 
follows : — 

A  bath  is  made  with  ten  gallons  of  Gallipoli  oil,  15  gallon  measures  of  sheep's 
dung  not  indurated ;  .40  gallons  of  solution  of  soda  crystals,  of  106  specific  gravity; 
10  gallons  of  solution  of  pearl-ash  of  spec.  grav.  1-04;  and  140  gallons  of  water; 
constituting  a  milk-white,  soapy  solution  of  about  spec.  grav.  1022. 


*  The  avarices  (residuary  liquors)  in  which  the  cotton  has  been  worked  after 
the  galling,  are  good  for  nothing,  and  must  be  thrown  away. 


RED. 


315 


This  liquor  is  put  into  a  large  cylindrical  vat,  and  con- 
stantly agitated  by  the  rotation  of  wooden  vanes,  which  are 
best  constructed  on  the  plan  of  the  mashing  apparatus  of 
a  brewery,  but  far  slighter.  This  saponaceous  compound  is 
let  off  as  wanted  by  a  stopcock  into  the  trough  of  a  padding 
machine,  in  order  to  imbue  every  fibre  of  the  cloth  in  its 
passage.  This  impregnation  is  still  more  fully  ensured  by 
laying  the  padded  cloth  aside  in  wooden  troughs  during  six- 
teen or  eighteen  days. 

The  cloth  is  padded  again  with  the  saponaceous  liquor; 
and  again  spread  on  the  grass,  or  well  dried  in  the  stove. 
This  alternation  is  repeated  a  third  time,  and  occasionally, 
even  a  fourth. 

The  cloth  by  this  time  is  varnished  as  it  were  with  oil, 
and  must  be  cleansed  in  a  certain  degree  by  being  passed 
through  a  weak  solution  of  pearl-ash,  at  the  temperature 
of  about  122°  F.  It  is  then  squeezed  by  the  rollers  and 
dried.  A  second  system  of  oiling  now  commences,  with 
the  following  liquor : — 

10  gallons  of  Gallipoli  oil ;  30  gallons  of  soda  crystals  ley,  of  spec.  grav.  106,  and 
10  gallons  of  caustic  potash  ley,  of  spec.  grav.  104,  thoroughly  diffused  through 
1 70  gallons  of  water. 

With  this  saponaceous  liquor  the  cloth  is  padded  as  before, 
and  then  passed  between  squeezing-rollers,  which  return  the 
superfluous  liquor  into  the  padding-trough.  The  cloth  may 
be  now  laid  on  the  grass  if  convenient ;  but  at  any  rate  it 
must  be  well  dried  in  the  stove.* 

These  saponifying,  grassing,  and  drying  processes,  are 
repeated  three  times ;  whereby  the  cloth  becomes  once  more 
very  oleaginous,  and  must  be  cleansed  again  by  steeping 
in  a  compound  ley  of  soda  crystals  and  pearl-ash  of  the 
spec.  grav.  1*012,  at  the  temperature  of  122°.  The  cloth 
is  taken  out,  squeezed  between  rollers  to  save  the  liquor, 
and  washed.  A  considerable  portion  of  the  mingled  alkalies 
disappear  in  this  operation,  as  if  they  entered  into  combi- 


*  See  chapters  I.,  II.,  III.  and  IV..  Part  VI. 


316  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

nation  with  the  oil  in  the  interior  of  the  cotton  filaments. 
The  cloth  should  now  be  dried. 

Galling  is  the  next  great  step  in  the  Turkey-red  pre- 
paration ;  and  for  its  success  all  the  oil  should  be  perfectly 
saponified.  The  proportions  and  mode  of  operating  are  as 
follows : — 

From  18  to  20  pounds  of  Aleppo  galls  (to  every  100  pounds  of  cloth)  are  to  be 
bruised  and  boiled  for  three  or  four  hours,  in  25  gallons  of  water,  till  5  gallons  be 
evaporated ;  and  the  decoction  is  then  passed  through  a  searce.  Two  pounds  of 
sumac  may  be  substituted  for  every  pound  of  galls. 

The  goods  are  to  be  well  padded  with  this  decoction,  kept 
at  90°  F.,  passed  through  the  squeezing-rollers,  and  dried. 
They  are  then  run  through  a  solution  of  alum  of  the  spec, 
grav.  1*04,  to  which  a  certain  portion  of  chalk  is  added  to 
saturate  the  acid  excess  of  that  supersalt ;  and  in  this  cre- 
taceous mixture,  heated  to  110°,  the  cloth  is  winced  and 
steeped  for  twelve  hours.  It  is  then  passed  between  squeez- 
ing-rollers,  and  dried  in  the  stove. 

Maddering. — This  process  comes  next. — From  two  to 
three  pounds  of  madder  ground  to  powder,  are  taken  for 
every  pound  of  cloth.  This,  as  usual  in  maddering,  is 
entered  in  the  cold  bath,  and  winced  for  one  hour,  that 
the  bath  takes  to  boil,  and  during  an  ebullition  of  two  hours 
afterwards.  One  gallon  of  bullock's  blood  is  added  to  the 
cold  bath  for  every  25  pounds  of  cloth ;  being  the  quantity 
operated  upon  in  one  bath.  The  utility  of  the  blood  in 
improving  the  color  has  been  ascribed  to  its  coloring  par- 
ticles ;  but  it  is  more  probably  owing  to  its  albuminous 
matter  combining  with  the  margarates  of  soda  and  potash 
condensed  in  the  fibres. 

As  madder  contains  a  dingy  brown  coloring  matter  asso- 
ciated with  the  red,  the  goods  must  be  subjected  to  a  clearing 
process  to  remove  the  former  tinge,  which  is  more  fugitive 
than  the  latter.  For  this  clearing  process  the  following  are 
the  ingredients  used  : — 

Every  hundred  pounds  of  cloth  are  boiled  during  twelve  hours,  at  least,  with 
water  containing  five  pounds  of  soda  crystals,  eight  pounds  of  soap,  and  16  gallons 
of  the  residual  pearl-ash  and  soda  ley  of  the  last  cleansing  operation. 


\ 


RED.  317 

By  this  powerful  means  the  dun  matter  is  well  nigh  re- 
moved ;  but  it  is  completely  so  by  a  second  boil,  at  a  heat  of 
250°  F.,  in  a  tight  globular  copper,  along  with  5  pounds  of 
soap,  and  1  pound  of  muriate  of  tin  crystals,  dissolved  in  a 
sufficient  body  of  water  for  100  pounds  of  cloth.  The  muri- 
ate of  tin  serves  to  raise  the  madder  red  to  a  scarlet  hue.  A 
margarate  of  tin  is  probably  fixed  upon  the  cloth  in  this  ope- 
ration. When  the  weather  permits,  the  goods  should  be  laid 
out  for  a  few  days  on  the  grass.  Some  manufacturers  give 
them  a  final  brightening  with  a  weak  bath  of  a  chloride  of 
lime  ;  but  it  is  apt  to  impoverish  the  color. 

M.  Clerc,  who  conducted  with  success  a  manufacture  of 
this  kind  at  Vaudreuil,  says,  that  "  the  cotton  (in  the  last  or 
finishing  process)  should  not  be  withdrawn  from  the  copper 
till  the  end  of  ten  or  twelve  hours,  because  it  becomes  richer 
in  the  brightening  and  takes  more  lustre.  It  must  thereafter 
be  well  washed,  hank  by  hank,  and  dried,  when  the  opera- 
tion is  complete."  This  gentleman  is  also  in  the  habit  of 
giving  his  cottons  (after  the  dyeing  processes  are  finished 
and  the  yarn  is  well  dried,)  one  dip.  The  liquor  for  this 
purpose,  "  consists  in  making  a  solution  of  tin  in  aqua  fortis, 
with  y1^ th  of  sal  ammoniac.  I  dilute  this  solution  with  eight 
pailfuls  of  water,  and  pass  the  cotton  through  it.  It  must 
be  afterwards  washed.  This  dip  gives  great  brilliancy  to  the 
color." 

According  to  Berthollet,  the  intensity  of  the  red  depends 
on  the  quantity  of  madder  employed  in  the  dye  ;  "  with  a 
weight  of  madder  equal  to  the  hanks,"  says  he,  "  the  color 
becomes  rose  by  brightening ;  with  four  times  the  weight  of 
the  hanks  of  madder,  the  finest  red  is  produced."  No 
wonder. 

THE  FRENCH  PROCESS  IMPROVED. — According  to 
the  latest  improvements  of  the  French  dyers,  each  of  the  foui 
processes  of  oiling,  mordanting,  dyeing,  and  brightening, 
differ,  in  some  respects,  from  the  above.  Their  first  step  is 
as  follows : — 

1.  The  cloth  is  boiled  for  four  hours,  in  water  containing 
one  pound  of  soap  for  every  four  pieces.    The  saponaceous 


318 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


bath  of  a  creamy  aspect  is  used  at  a  temperature  of  75°  F. ; 
and  it  is  applied  by  the  padding  machine  six  times,  with  the 
grassing  and  drying  alternations.  In  winter,  when  the 
goods  cannot  be  exposed  on  the  grass,  no  less  than  12  alter- 
nations of  the  saponaceous  or  white  bath  are  employed,  and 
8  in  spring.  They  consider  the  action  of  the  sunbeams  to 
aid  greatly  in  brightening ;  but  at  midsummer,  if  it  be  con- 
tinued more  than  four  hours,  the  scarlet  color  produced 
begins  to  be  impaired.  It  is  thought  that  the  oiling  opera- 
tion impregnates  the  fibres  with  super-margarate  of  potash  or 
soda,  insoluble  salts  which  attract  and  condense  the  alumina, 
and  the  red  coloring  particles  of  the  madder,  so  firmly  that 
they  can  resist  the  clearing  boil. 

2.  Mordanting  *  which  consists,  first,  in  padding  the 
pieces  through  a  decoction  of  galls  mixed  with  a  solution  of 
an  equal  weight  of  alum ;  and  after  drying  in  the  hot-flue, 
&c,  again  padding  them  in  a  solution  of  acetate  of  alumina, 
made  by  decomposing  a  solution  of  16  lbs.  of  alum  with  16 
lbs.  of  acetate  of  lead,  for  6  pieces  of  cloth,  each  32  aanes\ 
long. 

3.  Maddering,t  which  is  given  at  two  successive  opera- 
tions ;  with  4  pounds  of  Avignon  madder  per  piece  each  time. 

4.  Brightening,  which  is  performed  by  a  12  hours'  boil  in 
water  with  soda  crystals,  soap,  and  salt  of  tin;  and  the 
rosing  by  a  10  hours'  boil  with  soap  and  salt  of  tin.  Occa- 
sionally, the  goods  are  passed  through  a  weak  solution  of 
chloride  of  potash.  When  the  red  has  too  much  of  a  crim- 
son cast,  the  pieces  are  exposed  for  two  days  on  the  grass, 
which  gives  them  a  bright  scarlet  tint. 

Some  dyers  are  of  opinion  that  the  color,  when  the  bright- 
ening process  has  been  completed,  is  improved  by  preserving 
the  cotton  for  one  or  two  months  shut  up  pretty  tight  in 
hempen  bags.    This  seems  to  show  that  the  mordants  have 


*  See  chapter  L  of  this  Part. 

t  Aunt. — A  French  cloth  measure,  but  of  different  lengths  in  different  parts  of 
the  country.  At  Rouen,  it  is  an  English  ell;  at  Calais,  1-52;  at  Lyons,  1061 ; 
at  Paris,  0  95. — See  Appendix,  article  Measure. 

1  See  chapter  I.  Part  VI. 


RED. 


319 


not  completely  exhausted  their  action  in  the  operation  itself, 
and  that  the  affinities  between  them  and  the  coloring  matter 
require  a  certain  time  to  produce  their  whole  effect. 

COMMON  RED.— A  good  red  may  be  obtained  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner  : — 

1.  Soak  the  goods  for  twelve  or  fourteen  hours  in  acetate  of  alumina.  2.  Dram 
and  wring ;  gall  with  three  ounces  to  the  pound  of  goods.  3.  Dye  with  a  pound 
and  a  half  of  madder  and  two  ounces  of  Brazil-wood  to  the  pound  of  goods. 
4.  Brighten  with  an  ounce  of  soap,  to  the  pound  of  goods,  boiling  for  fifteen  min- 
utes, putting  in  the  goods  when  the  soap  is  dissolved. 

Warp  yarns  being  harder  twisted  than  those  for  wefts,  re- 
quire more  manipulation  to  give  them  an  equally  good  color. 
Linen  yarn,  according  to  Berthollet,  takes  a  color  almost  as 
brilliant  as  that  of  cotton,  but  it  must  be  passed  through 
double  the  number  of  oils  and  leys.  The  latter  should  be 
very  strong,  otherwise  the  oil  flows  out  on  the  surface.  The 
greatest  attention  must  be  paid  to  the  scouring  at  first ;  for 
the  yarn  entangles  by  the  heat,  to  such  a  degree  that  it  can 
be  neither  dipped  nor  unravelled.* 

BARWOOD  RED.t— The  following  method,  with  a  little 
attention,  will  give  the  finest  shades  of  red  : — 

1.  For  every  twenty  pounds  of  goods,  whether  cloth  or  yarn,  take  four  pounds 
of  sumac  well  boiled  in  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water,  to  allow  the  goods  to  steep 
in  it  without  being  hard  pressed,  the  clear  decoction  of  sumac  being  drawn  off  as 
soon  after  being  boiled  as  possible ;  to  this  are  added  two  ounces,  by  measure,  of 


*  Turkey,  or  Adrianople  Red. — Mr.  Cooper  gives  us  the  following  recipe,  with 
emendations,  for  obtaining  this  color,  and  which,  he  says,  he  copied  while  in  Man- 
chester, previous  to  the  publication  of  his  book  on  dyeing : — 1.  Boil  the  gray  cot- 
ton in  water  for  an  hour  and  a  half,  with  an  ounce  of  soft  soap  to  the  pound. 
Wash.  2.  Dissolve  in  five  quarts  of  water  an  ounce  of  pearlash,  and  as  much  fish 
oil,  or  Gallipoli  oil,  to  the  pound  of  cotton.  Let  the  goods  macerate  in  this  liquor, 
hot,  for  six  hours ;  wash.  3.  Steep  during  ten  days  in  fish  oil.  4  Wring,  rinse 
well,  and  dry.  5.  Gall  with  four  ounces  and  as  much  sumac,  to  the  pound  of 
goods:  wring  and  rinse;  run  for  an  hour  and  a  half  through  alum  liquor,  (steeping 
the  goods  for  six  or  eight  hours  in  the  acetate  of  alumina,  is  much  better,)  four 
ounces  to  the  pound.  Again  through  the  astringent  liquor ;  then  through  the 
alum  liquor,  refreshed  with  an  ounce  of  alum.  6.  Run  through  sheep's  dung ; 
rinse  immediately ;  wring.  7.  Dye  in  a  madder  bath,  with  a  pound  and  a  half  of" 
madder,  and  half  a  pint  of  blood  to  the  pound  of  goods.  8.  Wash.  Brighten  with 
white  soap  and  water. 

t  See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article,  Barwood. 


320 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


sulphuric  acid;  the  goods  are  allowed  to  steep  in  this  for  ten  or  twelve  hours.  If 
six  pounds  of  sumac  be  used  for  the  twenty  pounds  weight  of  goods,  four  hours7 
steeping  will  do. 

When  the  goods  are  taken  from  the  foregoing  liquor,  they 
are  wrought  through  spirits,  prepared  in  the  following  man- 
ner, at  the  density  of  3°  Twaddell  or  1-015  specific  grav- 
ity:- 

2.  Take  six  measures  muriatic  acid  and  one  of  nitric  acid,  add  tin  by  degrees 
until  white  bubbles  begin  to  rise  to  the  surface ;  allow  this  to  stand  for  twelve 
hours  before  using.* 

The  goods  are  wrought  in  this  till  they  assume  a  rich 
light  lemon  color,  or  say  for  fifteen  minutes,  then  washed  in 
cold  water  until  there  is  no  perceptible  taste  of  acid ;  after 
which  they  are  put  into  a  tub  of  hot  water  and  well  rinsed. 
One  pound  of  barwood  is  taken  for  every  pound  of  goods, 
and  put  into  a  boiler  large  enough  to  allow  the  goods  sufficient 
freedom  to  float  through  it. 

3.  The  goods  prepared  as  above  are  entered  ten  minutes  previous  to  boiling ;  they 
are  wrought  in  this  for  about  twenty  minutes  after  boiling ;  the  exact  time  of  taking 
them  out  must  be  judged  according  to  the  shade  wanted. 

With  this,  as  with  all  other  colors,  there  are  considerable 
differences  in  their  proportions  ;  some  prefer  weaker  decoc- 
tions and  longer  time  ;  others  vary  the  quantity  of  sumac 
only  ;  some  the  strength  of  spirits  and  the  quantity  of  bar- 
wood  ;  but  in  all  fancy  colors,  weak  solutions  and  long  time 
very  seldom  give  clear  bright  colors,  the  goods  appearing  as 
if  partially  worn.  Barwood  red,  when  dyed  as  above  de- 
scribed, is  a  beautiful,  rich  color,  and  is  the  most  permanent 
of  all  the  fancy  reds. 

BRAZIL-WOOD  RED.— Brazil-wood  possesses  like  log- 
wood a  distinct  coloring  matter  of  a  fine  red  hue.  Chevreul 
gives  the  following  process  for  extracting  it  in  a  state  of 
purity  : — "  Digest  the  raspings  of  wood  in  waterf  till  all  the 


*  See  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article  Barwood  Red  Spirits. 

t  Hellot  recommends  to  use  the  hardest  water,  but  it  should  be  remarked  that 
this  water  deepens  the  color  in  proportion  to  the  earthy  salts  which  it  contains. — 
See  chapter  II.  of  this  Part,  article  Purity  of  Water. 


RED. 


321 


coloring  matter  is  dissolved,  and  evaporate  the  infusion  to 
dryness  to  get  rid  of  a  little  acetic  acid  (vinegar)  which  it  con- 
tains. Dissolve  the  residue  in  water,  and  agitate  the  solution 
with  litharge  to  get  rid  of  a  little  fixed  acid  which  it  contains. 
Evaporate  again  to  dryness,  digest  the  residue  in  alcohol, 
filter  and  evaporate  to  drive  off  the  alcohol.  Dilute  the  re- 
sidual matter  with  water,  and  add  to  the  liquid  a  solution  of 
glue,  till  all  the  tannin  which  it  contains  is  precipitated ;  filter 
again  and  evaporate  to  dryness,  and  digest  the  residue  in  alco- 
hol, which  will  leave  undissolved  any  excess  of  glue  which 
may  have  been  added.  This  last  alcoholic  solution,  being 
evaporated  to  dryness,  leaves  brezilin,  the  coloring  matter  of 
the  wood,  in  a  state  of  considerable  purity." 

Brezilin  is  very  soluble  both  in  water  and  alcohol,  but 
from  the  hardness  of  the  wood  the  coloring  matter  is  not 
completely  extracted  except  by  boiling.  The  decoction  when 
boiled  has  a  deep  red  color,  but  passes  into  a  rich  yellow  red 
by  standing.  Acids  give  this  solution  a  yellowish  color,  but 
render  it  unfit  for  dyeing  operations.  The  following  facts 
may  prove  useful : — 


1.  Alkalies  

2.  Protosulphatc  of  iron  (copperas) 

3.  Persulphate  of  iron  . 

4.  Chloride  of  tin 

5.  Chloride  of  tin  with  warmed  liquor 

6.  Acetate  of  copper  .... 

7.  The  nitrates  of  the  metals  . 

8.  The  salts  of  potash,  soda,  and  ammonia 
0.  Alum  


a  violet  color,  fugitive, 
a  dark  purple,  not  changed  by  stand- 
ing. 

a  blackish  brown,  permanent. 

a  deep  crimson. 

a  deep  red  precipitate. 

a  dark  purple. 

a  dirty  yellow,  destroying  red. 

a  rose  color,  which  soon  passes  away. 

a  bulky  red  precipitate. 


Alum  and  the  chloride  of  tin,  are  considered  the  proper 
mordants  for  Brazil-wood  ;  but  all  the  colors  obtained  by  this 
wood  are,  unfortunately,  exceedingly  fugitive,  losing  their 
brilliancy  on  a  short  exposure  to  the  air.  The  sun  has  a. 
very  powerful  influence  upon  colors  dyed  by  this  wood, 
causing  them  to  assume  a  blackish  tint,  which  changes  to  a 
brown,  and  fades  away  to  a  light  dun.  These  changes  are 
supposed  to  be  owing  to  the  coloring  matter  being  decomposed 

41 


322  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

into  water  or  some  other  volatile  substance,  leaving  a  part  of 
the  carbon  free,  which  produces  the  black  ;  but  heat  is  also 
destructive  to  this  color ;  nevertheless,  the  consumption  of 
Brazil-wood  is  very  great,  especially  for  dyeing  what  is 
termed  fancy  reds. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BRAZIL-WOOD  RED.-- 
The  process  practiced  by  the  best  English  and  Scotch  dyers, 
at  the  present  moment,  for  producing  what  is  termed  fancy 
red  upon  cotton,  is  as  follows  : — 

1.  The  cloth  being  well  cleansed  from  grease  or  oil,  is  put 
into  a  hot  decoction  of  sumac,  made  by  boiling  half  a  pound 
of  sumac  to  the  gallon  of  water,  and  allowing  it  to  steep  in 
this  till  the  solution  becomes  cold,  or  about  twelve  hours. 

2.  The  cloth  is  now  put  into  the  spirit  bath  or  solution  ol 
tin,*  at  the  strength  of  about  4°  Twaddell,  and  kept  moving 
in  this  solution  for  about  half  an  hour,  or  until  it  assumes  a 
lemon-yellow  color. 

3.  The  goods  are  now  washed,  until  the  water  passing 
from  them  does  not  taste  acid. 

4.  The  cloth  is  now  worked  through  a  decoction  of  Brazil- 
wood, in  the  proportion  of  half  a  pound  of  wood  to  the  gal- 
lon of  water.  After  being  kept  moving  through  this  for 
twenty  minutes,  the  goods  are  taken  out,  and  a  little  alum, 
in  solution,  added  as  raising.  The  cloth  is  again  wrought 
in  this  for  five  or  ten  minutes,  washed  well  in  cold  water, 
and  dried. 

5.  If  a  rich  yellow  tint  of  red  is  wanted,  a  little  of  the  de- 
coction of  quercitron  should  be  added  to  the  Brazil-wood,  be- 
fore the  goods  are  first  entered. — (See  chapter  III.,  Part  I., 
articles  Brazil-wood  and  Barwood.) 

All  these  manipulations  are  to  be  performed  consecutively, 
and  in  the  order  above  given.t 


*  See  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article,  Brazil-wood  Red  Spirits. 

t  Dingier  has  endeavored  to  separate  the  coloring  matter  of  the  different  sorts 
of  Brazil-wood,  so  as  to  obtain  the  same  tint  from  the  coarser  as  from  the  best 
Pernambuco.  His  process  consists  in  treating  the  wood  with  hot  water  or  steam, 
in  concentrating  the  decoction  so  as  to  obtain  14  or  15  pounds  of  it  from  4  pounds 
of  wood,  allowing  it  to  cool,  and  pouring  into  it  two  pounds  of  skim  milk ;  agita- 


RED. 


323 


SAFFLOWER  PINK.— To  dye  cotton  pink  with  this 
substance,  the  liquor  may  be  used  as  extracted  from  the 
vegetable  ;  the  goods  require  no  previous  preparation,  except 
being  well  bleached.  The  quantity  of  liquor  used  varies 
according  to  the  shade  required ;  one  pound  of  safflower  to 
the  pound  of  goods,  gives  a  dark  rose  ;  and  the  other  shades 
in  the  same  proportion.   The  manipulations  are  as  follows  : — 

1.  The  goods  are  wrought  in  the  alkaline  solution  for  five  or  six  minutes ;  then 
taken  out,  and  vitriol  added  until  the  solution  tastes  decidedly  sour ;  the  goods  are 
again  immersed  and  kept  working  in  this  till  it  becomes  perfectly  exhausted. 
Exhaustion  is  known  by  the  operator  holding  a  little  in  a  phial,  between  him  and 
the  light ;  if  there  is  no  tinge  of  red,  the  solution  is  spent. 

2.  The  goods  should  now  be  well  washed,  by  passing  them  through  three  or 
four  tubfuls,  and  are  finished  by  passing  them  through  sour  water  with  tartar. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that,  in  dyeing  with  safflower, 
the  water  must  be  pure  and  always  cold  ;  as  a  very  little 
heat  destroys  the  beauty  of  the  color  ;  they  must  also  be 
dried  cold,  and  preserved  carefully  from  sunshine.  The 
colors  obtained  by  safflower  are  the  prettiest  that  can  be 
had  upon  cotton,  but,  unfortunately,  they  are  extremely 
fugitive.  The  most  beautiful  lilacs,  puces,  and  lavenders, 
are  obtained  by  safflower  and  Prussian  blue  ;  but  it  is  one 
of  the  most  difficult  colors  to  produce.* 


ting,  then  boiling  for  a  few  minutes,  and  filtering.  The  dun  coloring  matters  are 
precipitated  by  the  coagulation  of  the  caseous  substance.  For  dyeing,  the  de- 
coctions must  be  diluted  with  water ;  for  printing  they  must  be  concentrated,  so 
that  four  pounds  of  wood  shall  furnish  only  5  or  6  pounds  of  decoction.  The 
liquor  may  be  thickened  in  the  ordinary  way.  A  slight  fermentation  is  said  to 
improve  the  color  of  these  decoctions  ;  some  ground  wood  is  put  into  the  decoc- 
tion to  favor  this  process. 

*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  article  Safflower  and  Prussian  Blue. 


CHAPTER  IV, 


OF  YELLOW. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  YELLOW  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Splendid  new  Processes  of  Dyeing  Yellow  on  Cotton- 
Lemon- Yellow — Ambers— Precautions  to  be  observed — Absurd  notions  of  Dyers 
generally — Their  deficiency  in  Chemical  knowledge — Theory  and  Practice  of 
Dyeing — Various  experiments — Yellow  with  Weld  and  Quercitron — Opinions 
of  Authors  upon  Dyeing  with  these  substances. 

Preliminary  observations. — Yellow  is  the  primary  color 
that,  in  the  natural  scale,  occurs  between  red  and  the  active 
principle  of  pure  light ;  and  is  consequently  the  brightest 
in  the  solar  spectrum,  and  the  lightest  and  most  delicate 
of  the  primary  colors.  In  the  neutral  gray,  its  power  is 
therefore  greater  than  that  of  the  other  two,  being  more 
allied  to  light. 

In  artificial  light,  the  purest  yellow  loses  much  of  its  In- 
tensity, and  can  scarcely  be  distinguished  from  white.  This 
arises  from  such  lights  being  generally  of  a  yellow  tone, 
and  consequently  diffusing  this  color  over  all  objects  within 
their  influence.  In  daylight  its  effect  is  that  of  gaiety  ap- 
proaching to  gaudiness,  and  its  predominance  is  generally 
offensive  to  the  eye. 

There  is  no  color  that  requires  more  management  than 
yellow  in  colored  manufactures.  This  color  is  almost  always 
employed  in  its  purest  and  brightest  hues ;  while  the  other 
colors  which,  according  to  their  relative  powers,  ought  to 
predominate  in  intensity,  are  very  generally  much  inferior. 
Whether  this  proceeds  from  the  ease  with  which  it  is  pro- 
duced in  dyeing,  or  from  a  desire  to  produce  a  striking  effect, 
we  know  not ;  but  its  abuse  in  this  way  must  be  apparent 
to  all  people  of  taste  who  have  paid  any  attention  to  the 


YELLOW. 


325 


matter.  It  is,  however,  in  its  various  tints  and  combinations, 
of  the  greatest  value  in  producing  brilliancy  and  richness. 

Yellow  combines  with  red  in  the  production  of  orange 
color,  and  with  blue  in  that  of  green,  which  colors  are  its 
melodising  tones.  Its  contrasting  color  is  purple,  resulting 
from  the  combination  of  the  other  two  primaries  (red  and 
blue).  The  hue  in  which  yellow  predominates  is  called 
citrine,  a  compound  of  orange  color  and  green. 

Yellow  is  the  most  powerful  of  the  positive  colors,  and 
consequently  the  least  agreeable  to  the  eye,  when  unaccom- 
panied, or  when  predominating  in  a  pure  state.  Being  the 
lightest  of  positive  colors,  this  color,  next  to  white,  forms  the 
most  powerful  contrast  to  black.  There  are  fourteen  varie- 
ties of  yellow  enumerated  in  Syme's  Nomenclature:  but 
what  is  here  meant  by  yellow  is  the  color  of  the  yellow  jas- 
myn,  or  deepest  hue  of  lemon.  Yellow,  of  course,  forms  a 
component  part  of  all  the  tertiary  or  neutral  hues,  either  in 
predominance  or  of  subordination. 

In  the  vegetable  kingdom,  yellow  is  exhibited  in  great 
purity,  and  in  much  variety  of  tint  in  many  flowers. 
Amongst  animals,  it  often  occurs  in  the  plumage  of  birds, 
and  sometimes  in  the  furs  of  animals  and  scales  of  fishes. 

The  admixture  of  red  alters  its  tone  towards  warmth,  but 
does  not  very  apparently  change  its  character  until  it  ap- 
proaches orange  color ;  hence  many  mixtures  of  this  kind 
are  improperly  called  yellow.  But  from  its  alliance  to  light, 
and  from  blue  being  allied  to  darkness,  the  smallest  admix- 
ture of  that  color  changes  it.  to  a  greenish  tone,  thereby 
effectually  changing  its  character. 

In  the  mineral  kingdom,  sulphur  is  probably  the  only 
opaque  natural  substance  that  approaches  to  pure  yellow; 
and  some  of  the  topazes  give  this  color  translucently,  al- 
though generally  tinged  with  brownish  red. 

The  pigments  used  in  art,  are,  for  the  most  part,  the  pro- 
duct of  minerals  (see  mineral  colors),  amongst  which  the 
chromate  of  lead,  called  chrome  yellow,  is  the  purest. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  YELLOW.— The  salts  of 
lead  and  chromium,  have  completely  superseded  the  use  of 


326 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


vegetable  dye-stuffs  for  the  dyeing  of  yellows,  oranges,  and 
most  kinds  of  greens  upon  cotton.  To  dye  a  yellow,  the 
goods  are  immersed  or  wrought  through  a  solution  of  nitrate 
or  acetate  of  lead,  or  more  generally,  a  mixture  of  these,  after 
which  the  solution  is  wrung  tightly  out,  and  the  goods  passed 
through  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash,  then  passed  again 
through  the  lead  solution,  and  washed  and  dried.  The  pro- 
portions of  the  two  salts  vary  according  to  the  particular  hue 
and  depth  of  color  wanted,  and  for  deep  shades  the  goods  are 
passed  several  times  through  lead  and  chrome.  The  pro- 
portions now  used  in  the  best  English,  Scotch,  and  French 
dye-houses  are,  for  a  lemon-yellow,  as  follows : — 

10  lbs.  of  cotton,  4  oz.  of  nitrate  of  lead,  12  oz.  of  sugar  of  lead,  and  6  oz.  of 
chrome. 

If  the  shade  is  to  be  a  little  darker,  give  the  following  pro- 
portions of  ingredients : — 
5  oz.  nitrate  of  lead,  and  11  oz.  acetate  or  sugar  of  lead,  and  6£  oz.  of  bichromate. 

A  very  red  shade  of  yellow  requires  the  following  pro- 
portions : — 
8  oz.  nitrate  and  8  oz.  acetate  of  lead,  with  14  oz.  of  chrome. 

When  dark  ambers  are  wanted,  the  proportion  of  nitrate 
to  the  acetate  of  lead  is  increased,  but  the  last  is  the  highest 
proportion  of  bichromate  to  the  quantity  of  lead,  and  we  need 
hardly  say  that  anything  over  is  wasted.  The  proper  pro- 
portion for  dyeing  yellow,  even  were  the  salts  of  lead  entirely 
absorbed  by  the  goods,  is  as  near  as  possible  one-half  of  bi- 
chromate of  potash  to  the  lead,  whether  nitrate  or  acetate 
be  used.  All  above  that  is  direct  loss,  and  as  the  salt  of  lead 
is  never  all  taken  up  by  the  goods,  the  proportion  of  chrome 
may  be  less  than  half  the  weight  of  lead  used.  However,  it 
may  be  said  that  practice  has  dictated  these  quantities,  and 
the  results  of  practice  are  more  to  be  relied  upon  than  theory. 
Whether  then,  is  the  theory  or  practice  in  this  case  at 
fault  ?  It  will  be  observed  that  the  depth  of  redness  of  the 
shade  is  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  nitrate  of  lead 
used,  and  that  it  is  the  oxide  of  lead  in  the  acid  which 
gives  the  dye  with  the  chrome  acid  of  the  bichromate  of 


YELLOW. 


327 


potash.  Now  every  100  ounces  of  nitrate  of  lead  contains 
about  67£  ounces  of  oxide  of  lead,  and  every  100  ounces  of 
acetate  of  lead  contains  about  68|-  ounces  of  oxide  of  lead ; 
hence  the  same  weight  of  acetate  of  lead  should  give  a  richer 
dye,  and  take  up  in  proportion  a  little  more  bichromate  of 
potash  than  the  nitrate,  so  that  the  practice  of  giving  more 
bichromate  of  potash  with  nitrate  of  lead  mast  be  an  error. 
It  appears  that  the  extra  quantity  is  given  for  the  purpose  of 
reddening  the  hue  of  the  yellow.  How  this  is  effected  will 
be  seen  presently,  when  a  piece  of  cloth  is  put  into  acetate  or 
nitrate  of  lead.  The  cloth  is  merely  soaked  with  the  salt, 
there  is  no  fixing  of  the  oxide  upon  it ;  and  if  put  through 
water,  it  would  be  completely  washed  off.  In  this  state, 
therefore,  the  salt  cannot  form  a  dye,  it  must  be  rendered  in- 
soluble. This  is  effected,  as  we  have  observed  above,  by 
immediate  transposition  from  the  salt  of  lead  into  the  bi- 
chromate of  potash,  where  there  is  formed  the  insoluble 
chr ornate  of  lead.  That  portion  of  the  salt  which  obtains 
within  the  hollow  fibres  of  the  cotton  becomes  fixed,  but  all 
that  is  upon  the  goods  external  to  the  fibres  is  loose,  and 
either  falls  off  in  the  chrome  tub  or  is  washed  off  after.  This 
portion  probably  constitutes  one  half,  creating  so  much  loss ; 
and  it  is  well  known  that  where  chrome  yellow  dyes  are  pro- 
duced to  a  great  extent,  the  chromate  of  lead  thus  formed  is 
collected,  amounting  in  a  short  time  to  hundred  weights,  and 
sold  at  a  trifle  to  painters.  But  there  is  another  evil  attend 
ing  this  method.  Say  100  lbs.  of  yarn  is  to  be  dyed  a  red 
shade  of  lemon,  this  will  take  160  ounces  of  the  salt  of  lead, 
which  will  contain  53  ounces  of  acid  and  107  oxide  of  lead. 
If  we  suppose  that  all  the  lead  salt  is  taken  up  by  the  goods, 
which  is  seldom  the  case,  the  160  ounces  should  take  only  73 
ounces  of  bichromate  of  potash,  though  in  practice  they  take 
140  of  bichromate.    Now  what  is  the  result  ? 


73  Bichromate  of  <  5(H  chromic  acid  . '' 
potash         ( 22f  potash.  .    .    .  - 


160  Nitrate  or 
acetate  of  lead 


328 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


leaving  67  of  bichromate  of  potash  to  be  acted  upon  by  the 
free  acid  for  the  purpose  of  giving  a  red  shade.  Surely  some- 
thing cheaper  might  be  had. 

The  deleterious  effects  of  free  nitric  acid  in  the  chrome 
will  be  evident  by  adding  a  few  drops  of  nitric  acid  to  a 
strong  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash ;  the  color  remains 
unchanged.  Dip  a  piece  of  white  paper  in  this,  and  it  takes 
a  dark  orange :  expose  it  to  the  air,  and  in  15  minutes  the 
color  will  have  entirely  disappeared.  A  similar  change  is  ef- 
fected upon  the  goods  with  the  bichromate  upon  them  when 
taken  out  of  the  tub,  and  exposed  to  the  air  previous  to 
being  passed  through  the  solution  of  lead. 

All  these  evils  might  be  obviated  by  a  little  attention  to 
principles.  We  have  said  that  it  is  the  oxide  of  lead  which 
forms  the  dye  with  the  chromic  acid.  This  oxide  is  insolu- 
ble, and  could  be  fixed  in  this  state  in  the  goods  previous  to 
immersion  into  the  chrome  tub.  It  could  be  better  effected 
by  passing  the  goods  from  the  solution  of  lead,  through  a  tub 
full  of  water,  in  which  is  dissolved  a  small  quantity  of  soda 
or  potash ;  this  takes  up  the  acid  of  the  lead  salt  and  leaves 
the  insoluble  oxide  in  the  fibre.  If  this  be  put  through  the 
bichromate  of  potash,  it  gives  a  very  dull  yellow,  as  the 
affinity  of  the  chromic  acid  for  the  lead  is  prevented  from 
exercising  its  power  by  the  potash  which  is  in  union  with  it ; 
but  if,  previous  to  putting  in  the  goods,  a  few  drops  of  sul- 
phuric acid  be  added  to  the  chrome  solution,  the  chrome  acid 
is  set  free,  and  combines  freely  with  the  oxide  of  lead  upon 
the  cloth,  giving  a  beautiful  yellow.  If  a  red  shade  be 
wanted,  a  little  exposure  to  the  air  before  finishing  from  the 
lead  will  effect  it,  and  a  saving  will  be  made. — For  further 
information  on  these  subjects,  see  Mineral  Coloring  Sub- 
stances, chapter  IV.  Part  I.,  also  Calico  Printing,  Part  VI. 

YELLOW  WITH  WELD.— For  a  full  color  of  bright 
greenish  yellow,' use  weld,  and  proceed  as  follows: — 1.  Pre- 
pare in  a  bath  of  four  ounces  to  the  pound  of  alum  and  half 
an  ounce  of  blue  vitriol,  by  boiling  the  cloth  or  yarn  in  it  for 
an  hour,  and  letting  it  remain  in  the  liquor  till  cold.  Now 
drain  and  wring  out.    2.  The  goods  should  be  now  run 


YELLOW. 


329 


through  sheep's  dung  liquor  at  a  heat  of  120°  at  the  utmost, 
using  a  pint  of  dung,  and  half  an  ounce  of  pearlash,  to  the 
pound  of  goods.  Wring  out  slightly  and  let  them  remain  in 
this  wrung  and  slightly  moist  state,  for  twenty-four  hours. 
2.  Prepare  a  dye  bath  of  a  pound  and  a  quarter  to  a  pound 
and  a  half  of  weld  and  two  ounces  quercitron  to  the  pound 
of  goods,  by  boiling  the  weld  and  bark  in  a  sufficient  quan- 
tity of  water  for  two  hours ;  then  take  out  the  bundles  of 
weld,  and  strain  the  liquor.  Enter  the  goods  when  the 
liquor  is  warm,  and  bring  it  up  to  a  scald,  at  which  heat  con- 
tinue the  dyeing,  till  the  color  is  exhausted  or  the  required 
shade  is  obtained.  This  color  may  be  enlivened  by  boiling 
for  half  an  hour  in  an  ounce  of  white  soap  to  the  pound  of 
goods. 

The  shade  of  yellow  may  be  altered  by  omitting  the  blue 
vitriol  or  blue  copperas,  by  diminishing  the  alum,  and  by 
adding  an  ounce  of  pearlash  per  pound  of  goods  to  the  weld 
liquor.  When  quercitron  bark  is  used  instead  of  weld,  Ban- 
croft prescribes  at  the  utmost  but  eighteen  pounds  of  bark  to 
one  hundred  pounds  of  cloth,  or  of  yarn.  The  quercitron 
we  know  goes  far  in  point  of  color,  but  it  must  be  very 
choice  to  produce  a  full  color  with  a  quantity  so  small.  If 
for  eighteen  pounds  we  read  twenty-five,  we  do  not  think 
there  will  be  reason  to  complain  of  the  alteration.  The 
preparation  or  mordanting,  may  go  on  as  above  directed  in 
the  case  of  weld.  But  the  cloth  or  cotton,  he  says,  should  be 
entered  in  the  dye  bath  when  cold,  and  the  heat  brought 
up  gradually,  and  a  boiling  heat  should  not  be  used  for  more 
than  five  minutes,  as  it  is  apt  to  brown  the  color ;  which  is 
correct.  He  is  of  opinion,  with  Chaptal,  that  a  small  quan- 
tity of  lime  added  to  the  quercitron  bath  improves  the  color. 
He  also  recommends  as  an  aluminous  mordant,  the  acetate 
of  alumina  to  be  substituted  instead  of  the  sulphate  of  alu- 
mine  or  common  alum* — (See  Mordants,  chapter  I.  of  this 
Part,  article  Alum.) 


*  In  this  Bancroft  is  perfectly  right,  as  we  have  shown  in  the  chapter  above  re- 
ferred to, 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


We  say  nothing  in  this  place,  about  dyeing  cotton  yellow 
with  the  numerous  tribe  of  yellow  drugs  that  are  mentioned 
in  the  books  of  the  day,  because,  as  already  stated,  the  salts 
of  lead  and  chromium  have  completely  superseded  the  use  of 
vegetable  dye-stuffs  for  the  dyeing  of  yellows,  oranges,  and 
most  kinds  of  greens  upon  cotton.  For  the  common  yellows, 
weld  and  quercitron  answer  every  purpose.  We  know  that 
fustic,  hickory,  barbary-root,  golden-rod,  yellow-broom,  poplar, 
and  many  others  may  be  employed  for  yellows  ;  but  a  dyer 
of  the  common  colors,  needs  only  weld  and  quercitron  bark. 


CHAPTER  V, 

OF  BLUE. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLUE  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Preparation  of  Chemic,  or  Solution  of  Indigo — Mi* 
taken  notions  of  Dyers  and  Authors  upon  this  subject — Chemistry  of  the  Blue- 
Vat — Setting  the  Vat — Sulphate  of  Iron,  Impurities  of— Erroneous  opinions  ot 
Dyers  upon  this  subject — Effect  of  impure  Copperas,  or  Sulphate  of  Iron,  in  the 
Vat — Prussiate  of  Potash — Processes  of  Dyeing  Prussian  Blue — Dyeing  of 
Lilacs,  Puces,  Lavenders,  &c. 

Preliminary  observations. — Blue  is  the  third  of  the  pri- 
mary colors,  and  belongs  more  to  the  principle  of  darkness 
or  shade  than  either  of  the  other  two  (red  and  yellow),  and 
it  is  consequently  the  most  retiring  of  the  three.  It  is  also 
of  these  elements  the  most  cool  and  pleasing  to  the  eye. 
associating,  as  it  does,  with  the  groundwork  of  the  retina 
itself.  It  imparts  to  every  hue  of  which  it  forms  a  con- 
stituent, a  cooling  and  retiring  quality,  and  enters  into  com- 
bination with  yellow  in  the  production  of  green,  and  with 
red  in  that  of  purple,  which  are  consequently  its  melodizing 
colors.  The  contrasting  color  to  blue  is  orange,  and  the 
tertiary  in  which  it  predominates  is  olive — a  composition  of 
green  and  purple.  Blue  is  much  deteriorated  and  neutral- 
ized in  artificial  light,  and  is  therefore  decidedly  a  daylight 
color.  Olive,  as  an  individual  color,  is  soft  and  unassuming, 
and  is  of  great  use  in  all  arrangements,  whether  cool  or 
warm.  But  it  is  in  its  contrasting  powers  in  the  lower  notes 
(to  continue  the  analogy)  of  warm-toned  or  brilliant  compo- 
sitions that  it  is  most  valuable.  It  relieves  and  harmonises, 
according  to  its  various  hues,  the  tertiaries  russet,  citron, 
marone,  and  brown.  Owing,  however,  to  the  discord  already 
noticed,  it  ought  never  to  be  brought  into  immediate  contact 


332 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


with  blue  ;  it  is  absolutely  necessary  either  greatly  to  reduce 
the  green,  or  to  introduce  a  semi-tonic  color  between  them. 
This  color  may  be  a  gray  of  a  warm  purply  hue,  and  will 
melodise  best  in  being  blended  with  the  blue,  and  produce 
harmony  in  coming  distinctly  against  the  olive  in  its  full 
warmth.  Slate-color  is  the  next  hue  in  the  progress  of  blue 
down  to  black,  which,  from  its  peculiar  nature,  cannot  be 
used  in  any  but  cool-toned  arrangements. 

Blue  is  individually  a  pleasing,  and,  at  the  same  time,  a 
brilliant  color.  It  may,  therefore,  be  used  in  any  general 
arrangement  of  colors,  as  it  is  in  the  coloring  of  nature,  in 
a  much  larger  proportion  than  either  of  the  other  two  pri- 
maries (red  and  yellow).  As  a  leading  color  in  decoration, 
it  is  extremely  beautiful  when  in  its  proper  place.  For  in- 
stance, in  the  drawing-room  of  a  summer  residence,  especi- 
ally when  lighted  from  the  south,  its  effect  as  an  archeus  or 
key  is  cool  and  refreshing,  as  also  in  bed-rooms  of  the  same 
description.  In  all  variously -colored  manufactures  of  silk, 
pure  blue,  when  properly  introduced,  is  both  sparkling  and 
pleasing ;  but  in  worsted  manufactures,  its  shades  and  tints 
are  the  most  useful.  Pale  tints  of  blue,  or  any  other  color, 
should  never  be  introduced  into  warm  arrangements.  In 
such  cases  it  ought  always  to  be  used  in  its  deepest  hues  and 
shades.  This  should  be  particularly  attended  to  by  design- 
ers of  patterns  for  manufactures,  for  the  indiscriminate 
introduction  of  light  cool  tints  is  a  prevailing  error  amongst 
them.  It  has  already  been  explained,  that  warm  colors  are 
naturally  allied  to  light,  and  cool  colors  to  shade.  Light 
tints  are,  therefore,  when  employed  in  such  designs,  en- 
hanced and  strengthened  by  being  of  a  warm  tone,  and  are 
consequently  neutralised  and  sunk  as  they  approach  to  that 
which  is  cool. 

Blue,  like  the  other  two  primary  colors  (red  and  yellow), 
occurs  in  great  purity  in  some  flowers,  in  the  plumage  of 
some  birds,  and  even  in  portions  of  the  skin  of  some  beasts. 
But  it  is  found  less  frequently  in  the  vegetable  and  animal 
kingdoms  than  either  red  or  yellow. 

Amongst  minerals,  the  lapis  lazuli  presents  the  purest 


BLUE. 


333 


blue  that  can  be  conceived,  and  is  converted  by  a  very 
simple  process  into  an  equally  beautiful  pigment. — (See  Ap- 
pendix, article  Lazulite). 

PREPARATION  OF  CHEMIC.— The  only  substance 
which  dissolves  indigo,*  without  destroying  its  color  and 
composition,  is  highly  concentrated  sulphuric  acid.  For  this 
purpose,  the  fuming  acid  of  Nordhausen  is  preferable.  The 
substance  formed  is  popularly  known  by  the  name  of  sul- 
phate of  indigo,  Saxon  blue,  China  blue,  and  extract  of  in- 
digo. The  action  of  sulphuric  acid  upon  indigo  is  found  to 
be  something  more  than  a  mere  solution :  a  chemical  com- 
bination, in  definite  proportions,  results,  forming  two  distinct 
substances,  differing  considerably  from  each  other  in  their 
properties.  These  two  compounds  were  discovered  and  de- 
scribed by  Mr.  Crum,  and  called  by  him  cerulin  and  phina- 
ci?i,  from  their  colors — the  former  blue,  and  the  latter  purple. 
They  have  been  since  named  sulph-indylic  acid,  and  sulpho- 
purpuric  acid.  The  former,  which  constitutes  the  blue  prin- 
ciple of  Saxon  blue,  is  formed  most  abundantly  when  the 
sulphuric  acid  is  sufficiently  strong  and  abundant,  and  other 
proper  means,  to  be  noticed,  attended  to.  Its  composition 
is  found  to  be  one  atom  of  indigo  combined  with  two  of 
sulphuric  acid.  The  other  is  the  principal  product  when 
the  indigo  preponderates.  It  is  of  a  purple  color  ;  and  when 
the  solution  is  diluted  with  water,  it  precipitates.  Its  com- 
position is  found,  from  experience,  to  be  equal  to  one  atom 
sulphuric  acid  to  one  of  indigo. 

From  the  nature  and  properties  of  these  two  substances,  it 
is  evident  that  every  care  should  be  taken  to  convert  the  in- 
digo into  sulph-indylic  acid,  and  to  avoid  the  formation  of 
sulpho-purpuric  acid.  The  circumstances  under  which  this 
latter  acid  is  formed  are — first,  too  little  acid,  in  proportion  to 
the  indigo.  The  general  proportions  used  by  dyers  vary  from 
three  to  Jive  pounds  of  acid  to  one  pound  of  indigo.  This  is 
by  far  too  little,  and  occasions  a  considerable  loss  of  indigo  by 


*  For  the  cultivation."  properties,  and  manufacture  of  Indigo,  see  chapter  III.. 
Part  I.,  article  Indigo. 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  precipitation  of  the  sulpho-purpuric  acid,  when  the  solu- 
tion is  mixed  with  water.  Close  observation  shows  that  it 
requires  from  six  to  eight  pounds  of  the  fuming  sulphuric 
acid  to  convert  a  pound  of  indigo  into  blue  sulph-indylic  acid, 
and  will  require  from  eight  to  ten  of  the  strongest  English 
sulphuric  acid  to  give  the  same  results.*  From  some  investi- 
gation lately  made  by  M.  Dumas,  an  eminent  French  chem- 
ist, indigo  requires  even  a  larger  proportion  of  acid  to  convert 
it  into  sulph-indylic  acid.  He  recommends  no  less  than  fif- 
teen parts  of  acid  to  one  of  indigo.  This  quantity,  however, 
would  be  very  annoying  where  it  is  all  to  be  precipitated  by 
lime. 

Another  circumstance  under  which  sulpho-purpuric  acid  is 
formed,  is,  too  short  time  being  given  for  the  indigo  and  acid 
to  digest.  When  indigo  is  first  put  into  the  sulphuric  acid, 
there  seems  to  be  an  immediate  solution ;  but  if  a  drop  be 
spread  upon  a  window  pane,  it  appears  of  a  dirty  green 
color.  If  this  be  allowed  to  stand  for  a  little  upon  the  glass, 
a  yellowish-colored  liquid  begins  to  run  from  the  blue  mass, 
occasioned,  no  doubt,  by  the  acid  absorbing  moisture,  and 
separating  itself  from  the  indigo,  and  clearly  showing  that  the 
change  upon  the  indigo  by  the  acid  is  not  an  immediate  ef- 
fect. The  more  impure  the  indigo,  the  darker  and  greener 
appears  the  substance  when  put  upon  the  glass.  After  the 
mixture  has  stood  two  or  three  hours,  and  is  tried  in  the  same 
manner,  it  will  appear  of  a  reddish  purple  color, — the  princi- 
pal compound  existing  now  in  the  solution  being  sulpho-pur- 
puric acid.  As  the  liquid  stands,  it  begins  to  assume  a  violet 
shade,  and  finally  passes  to  a  deep  rich  blue.  But  dyers  sel- 
dom obtain  it  in  this  state  :  in  their  hands  it  generally 
has  a  reddish  tinge.  Mr.  Crum  found  that  when  the  solution 
is  diluted  with  water,  after  the  color  has  become  of  a  bottle- 


*  According  to  Dr.  Ure,  "  eight  pounds  of  the  common  oil  of  vitriol,  are  neces- 
sary to  dissolve  one  pound  of  indigo,"  but  observes,  "that  four  pounds  of  the 
smoking  acid,  may  possibly  effect  the  purpose."  If  Dr.  Ure  perfectly  understands 
this  subject,  as  he  says,  in  the  preface  of  his  Dictionary,  he  does,  why  does  he 
not  give  us  the  exact  results  of  his  practical  experience,  instead  of  theory  ?  We 
want  positive  information. 


BLUE. 


335 


green,  the  action  of  the  acid  is  stopped,  and  sulpho-purpuric 
acid  only  is  formed.  But  there  are  other  means  by  which  the 
action  of  sulphuric  acid  upon  indigo  may  be  stopped,  than  by 
directly  diluting  the  solution  with  water.  As  already  inti- 
mated it  is  only  the  highly  concentrated  sulphuric  acid  which 
converts  indigo  into  sulph-indylic  acid.  Now,  dyers  not  unfre- 
quently  alter  the  strength  of  their  acid,  by  the  process  of  mix- 
ing and  preparing  their  chemic*  This  is  very  generally  done 
in  an  open,  wide-mouthed  vessel,  which  is  allowed  to  stand 
uncovered,  probably  in  the  midst  of  the  steam  and  vapors  of 
the  dye-house  ;  or,  in  some  cases,  the  vessel  is  put  into  a 
boiler,  or  tub,  with  warm  water.!  By  these  injudicious 
means,  the  sulphuric  acid,  which  absorbs  water  very  rapidly, 
is  diluted  below  the  necessary  strength  for  dissolving  in- 
digo j  and  the  result  is,  the  formation  of  sulpho-purpuric 
acid  instead  of  sulph-indylic  acid,  which  is  the  real  sub 
stance  wanted.t 

Another  cause  of  the  stopping  of  the  action  of  the  acid  by 
dilution  is,  from  the  indigo.  Ground  indigo  absorbs  a  quan- 
tity of  moisture ;  and  if  it  be  not  thoroughly  dried  previous 
to  putting  it  in  the  acid,  the  acid  is  too  much  weakened  to  ef- 
fect the  formation  of  the  substance  required. 

There  are  other  causes  by  which  the  preparation  of  chemic 
is  injured.  Sometimes  the  acid  and  indigo  are  mixed  to- 
gether at  once,  and  by  this  means  the  heat  evolved  is  suf- 
ficient to  decompose  the  impurities  of  the  indigo.  Part  of 
the  acid  also  suffers  decomposition,  and  a  great  quantity  of 
sulphurous  acid  gas  is  given  off, — so  much,  indeed,  that  the 


*  The  technical  name  for  sulphate  of  indigo. 

tMr.  Partridge,  in  his  book  on  dyeing,  page  23,  tells  us  that  "  Chemic  should  be 
made  in  glass  or  stone-ware  pots.  Common  earthen-ware  will  not  answer,  for  the 
oil  of  vitriol  dissolves  the  glazing.  The  compound  may  be  made  either  in  a  sand 
heat,  or  in  warm  water."  We  hope  no  American  dyer  has  been  foolish  enough  to 
follow  these  directions. — (See  chapter  II.  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of  Water.) 

X  "  The  acid,"  says  Dr.  Ure,  "  is  to  be  poured  into  an  earthen  pan,  which,  in 
summer,  must  be  placed  in  a  tub  of  cold  water  to  prevent  it  getting  hot,  and  the  in- 
digo, in  fine  powder,  is  to  be  added,  with  careful  stirring,  in  small  successive  por- 
tions. If  it  becomes  at  all  heated,  a  part  of  the  indigo  is  decomposed  with  the  disen- 
gagement of  sulphurous  acid  gas,  and  indigo  green  is  produced." 


336 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


head  cannot  be  held  above  the  vessel  for  any  length  of  time 
without  injury.  Another  practice  is — for  the  sake  of  quick- 
ening the  operation — to  place  the  vessel  upon  the  flue  in  the 
stove,  and  keep  the  solution  for  hours  at  a  heat  upwards  of 
300°  F.  The  gas  given  off  in  these  cases  is  sometimes  so 
great  as  to  destroy  the  colors  of  goods  hanging  in  the  stove. 
Indigo  submitted  to  such  treatment  is  seldom  found  good : 
often  its  appearance  on  the  glass  (which  is  a  general  method 
of  testing  the  quality  of  sulphate  of  indigo,) — is  a  blackish 
green — sometimes  a  dirty  purple — seldom  the  fine  blue  violet 
— scarcely  ever  the  beautiful  blue. 

Although  the  sulpho-purpuric  acid  is  precipitated  when 
water  is  mixed  with  the  solution  of  sulphate  of  indigo,  and  is 
insoluble  in  dilute  acids,  it  is,  when  freed  from  the  sulphuric 
acid,  soluble  in  distilled  water  ;  but  if  any  substance  be  in  the 
water — and  common  spring  water  is  never  pure* — it  is  less 
soluble.  It  dissolves  in  alkalies,  and  in  solutions  of  the  alka- 
line earths,  giving  a  blue  color,  of  greater  or  less  purity,  ac- 
cording to  the  nature  of  the  solvent. 

We  have  found  the  following  method  of  preparing  sul- 
phate of  indigo,  in  quantities  for  use,  very  satisfactory  : — 

The  indigo  is  reduced  to  an  impalpable  powder,  either  by  grinding  in  a  mortar 
or  a  mill,  and  completely  dried,  by  placing  it  upon  a  sand  bath  or  flue  for  some 
hours,  at  a  temperature  of  about  140°  or  150°  F.  For  each  pound  of  indigo,  ten 
pounds  of  highly  concentrated  sulphuric  acid  are  put  into  a  large  jar,  or  earthen 
pot,  furnished  with  a  cover.  This  is  kept  in  as  dry  a  place  as  possible,  and  the  in- 
digo is  added  gradually,  in  small  quantities.  The  vessel  is  kept  closely  covered, 
and  care  taken  that  the  heat  of  the  solution  does  not  exceed  212°  F.  When  the 
indigo  is  all  added,  the  vessel  is  placed  in  such  a  situation,  that  the  heat  may  be 
kept  at  about  150°  F..  and  allowed  to  stand,  stirring  occasionally,  for  forty-eight 
hours.  These  precautions  being  attended  to,  we  have  uniformly  found  that  any 
failure  occurring,  was  clearly  traceable  to  the  impurity  of  the  indigo,  or  weakness 
of  the  acid  used.t 


*  See  chapter  II..  of  this  Part,  article  Purity  of  Water. 

t  Chemic-blue  is  used  for  various  operations  in  dyeing.  When  diluted  with 
twenty  times  its  quantity  of  boiling  water,  and  allowed  to  settle,  it  is  sometimes 
used  for  dyeing  colors  upon  icool  and  silk — especially  for  greens  upon  the  latter 
substance.  A  little  carbonate  of  potash  is  added,  by  some,  with  the  boiling  water, 
and  the  clean  solution  used  as  above.  When  fine  light  shades,  such  as  sky-blue 
&c,  are  wanted,  this  diluted  liquor  is  boiled  or  digested  with  a  piece  of  woolen 


BLUE. 


337 


We  have  already  mentioned  that  indigo  is  insoluble,  except 
in  strong  sulphuric  acid  ;*  but  if  it  be  by  any  means  deprived 
of  an  atom  of  oxygen  (according  to  the  common  theory,)  it 
is  soluble  in  alkalies.  It  may  be  said  that,  according  to  the 
law  of  definite  proportions  already  described,  it  cannot  be  in- 
digo with  an  atom  less  of  oxygen.  Neither  is  it ;  and  we 
see  that  it  has  different  properties  from  common  indigo,  for  it 
is  soluble  even  in  weak  alkalies  ;  has  a  powerful  attraction 
for  oxygen  ;  and  is  of  a  white  color.  This  substance  has 
been  termed  indigogen,  and  it  may  be  observed,  that  the 
nature  of  the  blue  vat  depends  upon  the  introduction  of  sub- 
stances capable  of  extracting  oxygen  from  the  indigo,  and 
converting  it  into  indigogen.  The  substances  generally 
used  for  this  conversion  are  the  protoxides  of  iron  and  tin, 
orpiment  (sulphuret  of  arsenic),  and  organic  substances. 
These  last  produce  the  desired  effect  by  their  decomposition, 
such  as  in  the  woad  vat,  where,  by  the  fermentation  of  the 
woad  and  madder,  the  oxygen  is  extracted  from  the  indigo 
which  is  thus  converted  into  indigogen.  The  indigogen  is 
dissolved  as  it  forms,  by  the  potash  put  into  the  vat.t 

CHEMISTRY  OF  THE  BLUE  VAT. — What  is  termed 
the  common  blue  vat,  or  lime  vat,  is  made  up  with  indigo, 
lime,  and  sulphate  of  iron  (copperas).  But  before  describing 
the  nature  of  this  vat,  it  will  be  necessary  to  say  something 
upon  the  nature  and  properties  of  the  oxides  and  salts  of  iron. 
Iron  combines  with  oxygen  in  two  different  proportions.! 


cloth,  which  takes  up  the  blue  color;  what  remains  is  a  greenish- colored  sub- 
stance, probably  the  impurites  of  the  indigo.  The  cloth  is  washed  with  cold  wa- 
ter, and  kept  for  use.  When  light  shades  are  to  be  dyed,  this  cloth  is  put  through 
hot  water,  which  extracts  a  quantity  of  the  blue.  When  warm  water  ceases  to 
extract  enough,  a  very  minute  quantity  of  a  carbonated  alkali  is  added,  which 
bleeds,  as  dyers  term  it,  the  color  from  the  cloth. — See  Part  IV. 

*  Although  we  have  described  the  action  of  sulphuric  acid  upon  indigo  to  be 
something  different  from  solution,  we  use  the  term  for  convenience. 

t  The  method  of  preparing  chemic  for  dyeing  green  upon  light  cotton  goods,  is 
detailed  in  chapter  VII.  of  this  Part,  and  to  which  the  reader  is  referred. 

%  There  has  been  a  new  oxide  of  iron  discovered  lately  by  M.  Fremy.  This 
oxide  is  obtained  by  igniting  a  mixture  of  potash  and  peroxide  of  iron ;  a  brown 
mass  is  the  result,  which,  by  digestion  in  water,  gives  a  beautiful  violet-red  colored 

13 


338 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


The  first  of  these  combinations  is  one  atom  oxygen  with  one 
atom  iron  :  this  is  termed  the  first  or  protoxide.  The  second 
oxide  consists  of  three  atoms  oxygen  to  two  atoms  iron  :  this 
is  termed  the  peroxide,  and  is  the  highest  oxide  recognised 
by  chemists.  The  first  of  these,  namely  the  protoxide,  has 
such  a  strong  attraction  for  oxygen,  that  it  is  nearly  unknown 
in  a  pure  state  ;  but  it  exists  in  combination  with  some  acids, 
such  as  sulphuric  acid,  forming  the  sulphate  of  the  protoxide 
of  iron.  When  this  acid  is  neutralized  by  an  alkaline  sub- 
stance, so  that  the  oxide  is  set  at  liberty,  it  immediately 
begins  to  absorb  oxygen,  and  passes  into  a  peroxide.  This 
property  of  the  protoxide  of  iron  being  kept  in  mind,  it  will 
enable  us  to  explain  the  theory  of  the  blue  vat.  When  finely 
ground  indigo  is  put  into  a  vat  with  a  mixture  of  lime  and 
sulphate  of  iron,  the  first  action  which  takes  place  is  the  de- 
composition of  the  metallic  salt  ;*  the  acid,  which  is  in  union 
with  the  protoxide  of  iron,  combining  with  a  portion  of  the 
lime,  forming  sulphate  of  lime.  The  detached  oxide  of  iron 
extracts  more  oxygen  from  the  indigo,  converting  it  into  in- 
digogen  ;  and  the  peroxide  of  iron  thus  formed,  and  the  sul- 
phate of  lime  precipitate,  forming  what  is  termed  sludge. 
The  remaining  portion  of  lime  seizes  the  indigogen,  and 
forms  with  it  the  solution  required.  The  following  diagram 
represents  this  action  and  the  results  more  clearly,  and  may 
be  called  the  theory  of  the  blue  vat : — 

solution.  The  compound  is  very  soluble  in  water.  A  large  quantity  of  water  de- 
composes it  in  course  of  time.  But  it  becomes  insoluble  in  very  alkaline  water, 
forming  a  brown  precipitate,  which  readily  dissolves  in  pure  water,  and  affords  a 
fine  purple-colored  solution.  A  temperature  of  212°  dissolves  it  immediately ;  all 
organic  substances  decompose  it;  and  hence,  it  is  impossible  to  filter  the  solution. 
It  is  impossible  to  isolate  this  compound,  for  when  the  red  solution  is  treated  by  an 
acid  as  soon  as  the  potash  is  saturated,  oxygen  is  disengaged,  and  peroxide  of  iron 
precipitated.  If  the  acid  be  in  excess,  it  dissolves  the  peroxide,  and  gives  rise  to 
the  formation  of  a  peroxide  salt  of  iron.  It  is  said  it  possesses  a  powerful  dyeing 
principle. 

*  By  the  successive  immersions  in  milk  of  lime  and  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron, 
protoxide  of  iron  comes  to  be  precipitated  on  the  surface  of  the  cloth.  This  pro- 
toxide of  iron,  with  the  assistance  of  the  lime,  reacts  on  the  indigo  imprinted  on 
the  calico,  through  the  intervention  of  water,  into  indigotin,  which  dissolves  in  the 
■lime-water,  and  the  solution  is  absorbed  into  the  pores  of  the  cloth. 


BLUE. 


339 


Indigo, 


of 


2  Copperas 


3  Lime 


(  Indigogen 
\  Oxygen    .  . 
f  Oxide  of  iron 
I  Oxide  of  iron 
j  Sulphuric  acid 
(^Sulphuric  acid 

SLime  .  .  . 
Lime  .  .  . 
Lime    .    .  . 


Dyeing  solution. 


Peroxide  of  iron. 


Sulphate  of  lime. 
Sulphate  of  lime. 


It  will  be  observed,  that  the  theory  of  the  blue  vat  depends 
upon  the  supposition,  that  indigogen  is  indigo,  with  an  atom 
less  oxygen ;  but  M.  Dumas,  from  the  results  of  some  analy- 
sis which  he  made  upon  indigo,  considers  indigogen  to  be  the 
blue  indigo,  in  combination  with  hydrogen.  According  to 
this  view  of  the  composition  of  indigogen,  the  action  which 
takes  place  in  the  vat  will  be  a  little  different  from  that  given 
above.  When  the  lime  combines  with  the  acid  of  the  cop- 
peras, the  iron  decomposes  a  portion  of  water  combining  with 
the  oxygen,  and  the  hydrogen  combines  with  the  indigo  form- 
ing indigogen,  which  may  be  represented  as  follows : — 


Indigo     |  Indigo 


Water      i  Hydrogen  .  . 

WatCr      I  Oxygen     .  . 

C Lime     .    .  . 

3  Lime    1  Lime     .    .  . 

(  Lime     .    .  . 

C  Oxide  of  iron 
n  ~  ]  Oxide  of  iron 

2  Copperas^  Sulphuric  add 

(^Sulphuric  acid 


Indigogen,  forming 
Dyeing  solution. 


 ~-  Peroxide  of  iron. 


Sulphate  of  lime. 
Sulphate  of  lime. 


The  theory  is  equally,  if  not  more  beautiful,  than  the  for- 
mer, but  in  some  cases  it  is  scarcely  equally  reconcilable  with 
our  chemical  experience.  When  the  goods  are  put  into  the 
vat,  the  dissolved  indigogen  combines  with  them,  and  when 
brought  into  contact  with  the  air,  according  to  the  former 
theory,  the  indigogen  combines  with  oxygen,  for  which  it  has 
a  strong  disposition,  and  blue  indigo  is  formed,  and  remains 
combined  with  the  cloth ;  but  according  to  the  latter  theory, 
the  blue  indigo  is  left  in  combination  with  the  cloth  by  the 
hydrogen  combining  with  the  oxygen  of  the  atmosphere,  form- 
ing water.  That  hydrogen  should  combine  with  the  free 
oxygen  of  the  air,  and  form  water  so  rapidly  under  such  cir- 


340 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


cumstances  as  mere  exposure,  is  somewhat  anomaious,  but 
this  is  no  reason  for  rejecting  it.  If  a  mixture  of  copperas 
and  lime  be  put  into  a  bottle  with  distilled  water,  the  water  is 
not  decomposed ;  the  lime  combines  with  the  acid,  which, 
along  with  the  iron,  is  precipitated,  and  if  the  air  be  com- 
pletely excluded,  the  iron  remains  as  a  protoxide  for  days ; 
indeed,  the  change  from  a  protoxide  to  a  peroxide,  is  so  slow 
that  a  long  time  elapses  before  it  is  appreciable ;  but  if  indigo 
be  added,  even  after  the  mixture  has  stood  for  some  time,  the 
action  of  the  common  vat  proceeds.  This,  according  to 
Dumas'  theory,  gives  a  beautiful  illustration  of  relative  affini- 
ties. Before  the  indigo  is  introduced,  the  attraction  of  the 
iron  for  oxygen  is  about  equal  to  that  of  the  hydrogen,  which 
holds  it  in  combination  as  water ;  but  when  the  indigo  is  in- 
troduced, although  its  attraction  for  hydrogen  must  be  very 
weak,  as  it  requires  the  nicest  management  to  get  that  com- 
pound isolated  ;  still  it  is  sufficient  to  disturb  that  equilibrium 
with  which  the  oxygen  was  held  by  the  iron  and  hydrogen, 
giving  the  former  the  mastery.  Whether  the  presence  of  an 
alkaline  substance  has  any  effect  of  inducing,  if  we  be  al- 
lowed the  term,  the  formation  of  indigogen,  we  cannot  pretend 
to  determine ;  but  it  is  never  formed  in  the  vat  without  the 
presence  of  some  alkaline  substance,  which  dissolves  it  the 
moment  it  is  formed. 

SULPHATE  OF  IRON.— As  the  sulphate  of  iron  (cop- 
peras) is  the  general  deoxidising  agent  used,  and  there  being 
a  good  deal  of  prejudice  amongst  our  brethren  respecting 
the  proper  qualities  of  that  substance,  we  shall  offer  a  few 
suggestions  upon  the  proper  choice  of  copperas.  If  a  piece 
of  iron  be  put  into  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  it  dissolves  with  the 
evolution  of  hydrogen  gas.  This  solution  being  evaporated 
till  a  pellicle  or  sort  of  skin  appears  on  its  surface,  and  set 
aside  to  cool,  a  great  quantity  of  green  colored  crystals  are 
deposited.  These  crystals  are  copperas  ;  but  the  greater  part 
of  sulphate  of  iron  used  in  the  arts  is  prepared  by  a  different 
process.  Sulphuret  of  iron,  or  iron  pyrites,  is  a  mineral  found 
very  abundantly  in  some  places  in  the  coal  measures,  along 
with  coaly  matter  and  clay.    When  these  materials  are  ex- 


BLUE. 


341 


posed  to  the  action  of  the  atmosphere  and  moisture,  the 
pyrites  absorbs  oxygen,  and  the  sulphur  becomes  converted 
into  sulphuric  acid ;  this  attacks  the  iron,  and  also  the  alu- 
mina of  the  clay.  These  sulphates  are  dissolved  with  water, 
which  drains  through  into  beds  prepared  for  the  purpose,  and 
the  liquor  is  afterwards  evaporated  to  the  proper  extent,  so  as 
to  allow  the  sulphate  of  iron  to  crystalize.*  Iron  is  some- 
times added  to  the  solution,  which  takes  up  any  free  acid  and 
separates  some  impurities  such  as  copper.  By  adding  sul- 
phate of  potash  to  the  supernatant  liquor,  alum  is  formed. 
Sulphate  of  iron  is  found  to  be  composed  of  one  proportion  of 
sulphuric  acid,  and  one  of  oxide  of  iron,  and  crystalizes  with 
seven  atoms  of  water.  It  loses  six  of  these  atoms  of  water 
if  exposed  to  a  heat  of  238°  Fah.  This  is  the  description 
generally  given  in  chemical  books  of  this  salt ;  but  the  dyers 
know  from  experience,  that  there  are  varieties  of  copperas, 
whatever  may  constitute  the  difference  of  composition.  Bands- 
dorff  in  the  Records  of  Science,  states,  "  that  there  are  three 
varieties  of  the  protosulphate  of  iron  ;  the  first  greenish  blue, 
formed  from  an  acid  solution  free  from  peroxide  ;  the  second 
dirty  green,  from  a  neutral  solution  without  peroxide;  and 
the  last  emerald  green,  from  a  solution  impregnated  with  per- 
oxide salt."  This  we  know  by  experience  to  be  correct — 
that  answering  the  description  of  his  second  variety  being  the 
best  for  general  use.  The  selection  of  this  particular  quality 
of  copperas  has  led  dyers  into  a  fatal  prejudice.  Sulphate  of 
iron  crystalized  from  a  neutral  solution,  if  kept  any  time  as- 
sumes a  rusty  appearance  by  absorbing  oxygen,  and  convert- 
ing the  iron  into  a  peroxide.  Now,  good  copperas  having 
generally  this  appearance,  especially  on  the  surface  of  the 
cask  when  opened,  dyers,  most  of  them,  are  of  the  opinion 
that  it  is  to  this  redness  it  owes  its  superior  quality.  But 
from  the  description  already  given  of  the  nature  of  the  vat,  it 
will  be  obvious  that  all  that  is  red  is  useless,  nay  worse,  for  it 


*  English  copperas  is  often  prepared  from  pyrites.  Where  there  is  no  clay  pres- 
ent, the  excess  of  acid  is  taken  up  by  adding  iron. — (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III., 
article  Iron. 


342 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


adds  to  the  sediment  in  the  vat.  And,  besides  this,  Parkes 
mentions  in  his  chemical  essays,  that  some  unprincipled  deal- 
ers take  advantage  of  this  prejudice  of  the  dyers,  to  sprinkle 
powdered  lime  on  the  top  of  the  cask  to  peroxidise  the  sur- 
face, and  make  them  believe  that  they  have  got  a  lot  of  ex- 
cellent old  copperas. 

It  may  still  be  inquired  what  constitutes  the  difference  of 
these  varieties  of  the  sulphate  of  iron  alluded  to  2  We  are 
sorry  to  say  that  we  cannot  give  a  decided  answer  to  this  in- 
quiry, but  will  merely  mention  the  results  of  our  own  experi- 
ence relative  to  the  question,  and  which  are  as  follows  : — 

1.  Our  first  method  for  ascertaining  the  real  value  of  copperas,  was  by  taking  a 
weighed  quantity,  generally  twenty  grains,  of  the  salt,  dissolving  it  in  distilled 
water ;  boiling  the  solution,  with  the  addition  of  a  few  drops  of  pure  nitric  acid, 
to  peroxidise  the  iron  which  was  precipitated  by  adding  an  excess  of  ammonia. 
The  precipitate  was  placed  upon  a  filter,  thoroughly  washed  and  dried.  The 
peroxide  of  iron  was  then  carefully  weighed,  and  noted.  The  average  results  of 
these  trials  were  as  21  to  24,  that  is  21  pounds  of  good  old  copperas,  as  dyers  term 
it,  were  equal  to  24  pounds  of  new  copperas. 

These  results  correspond  with  the  practical  effects  experi- 
enced in  working  the  vats ;  but  the  mere  extra  quantity  of 
copperas,  necessary  to  keep  the  vats  in  working  condition, 
when  this  bad  stuff  is  used,  is  not  the  worst.  It  is  also 
necessary,  under  these  circumstances,  to  add  an  extra  quan- 
tity of  lime,  which,  in  technical  language,  causes  the  vats  to 
swim  ;  that  is,  the  precipitate  swims,  and  is  long  in  settling 
to  the  bottom — the  goods  come  in  contact  with  it,  and  the 
color  is  deadened.  Under  this  emergency  the  dyer  uses  a 
little  carbonate  of  soda  or  potash,  which  forms  soluble  salts, 
and  causes  no  extra  precipitation.  In  order  to  ascertain  the 
true  amount  of  this  evil,  the  following  experiment  was  made : — 

2.  A  solution  of  nitrate  of  barytes  was  taken  in  the  common  alkalimeter,  at 
such  a  strength  that  one  graduation  of  the  alkalimeter  exactly  precipitated  the  acid 
of  one  grain  of  the  best  copperas. 

The  average  difference  found  by  this  method  of  experi- 
menting, was  as  20  to  21 ;  and  experience  taught  that,  for 
every  15  pounds  of  bad  copperas,  2  pounds  extra  lime  had  to 
be  added.    It  was  probably  the  result  of  such  experience 


BLUE. 


343 


which  led  dyers  to  suppose  that  there  was  a  bisulphate  of  the 
protoxide  of  iron,  and  to  give  instructions  how  to  guard 
against  it.*  As  this  watery-looking,  whitish,  blue,  green, 
copperas,  is,  according  to  Bandsdorff,  crystalized  from  an  acid 
solution,  it  is  probable  that  the  extra  proportion  of  acid  which 
is  found  in  it  is  owing  to  a  portion  of  the  mother  liquor  be- 
ing mechanically  combined  with  the  crystals,  but  not  form- 
ing an  essential  ingredient  in  the  composition  of  the  salt. 

It  may  be  observed  that  the  experiments  we  have  detailed, 
favor  the  idea  of  the  bad  copperas  being  a  bisulphate  of  iron, 
seeing  that  a  given  weight  of  the  one  has  less  iron  and  more 
acid  than  the  same  weight  of  the  other.  But,  it  has  been 
already  noticed  that  sulphate  of  iron  crystalizes  with  seven 
atoms  of  water.  Is  this  quantity  of  water,  we  would  ask, 
invariable  ?  The  green  color  of  the  salt  depends  upon  the 
presence  of  water,  for  when  deprived  of  its  water  it  is  white ; 
now  the  colors  of  the  twTo  kinds  of  copperas  referred  to  are 
decidedly  different,  as  already  described.  May  it  not,  there- 
•  fore,  be  inferred  that  the  difference  of  color  depends  upon  dif- 
ferent proportions  of  water  present  in  the  crystals,  which,  if 
this  be  the  case,  will  account  for  the  different  proportions  of 
iron  found  in  the  same  weight  of  the  salt?  It  has  been 
already  noticed,  that  of  the  seven  proportions  of  water  which 
copperas  contains,  it  loses  six  at  238°,  but  it  retains  one  even 
at  535°  :— 

3.  We  took  20  grains  of  each  of  the  good  and  bad  qualities  of  copperas,  re- 
duced them  to  coarse  powder,  and  submitted  them  to  a  heat  of  between  350°  and 
400°,  for  fifteen  minutes;  and  taking  the  mean  of  three  experiments,  the  bad 
copperas  lost  1  1-2  grains  more  than  the  other. 

Although  these  results  were  very  satisfactory,  in  so  far  as 
they  agree  very  nearly  with  our  other  experiments,  and  ex- 
actly coincide  with  our  practical  experience,  yet,  as  the  re- 
sults have  not  been  noticed  so  far  as  we  are  aware  by 
chemists  who  have  written  upon  the  subject,  it  is  with  some 
diffidence  that  we  give  them  publicity,  and  for  the  same 
reason  refrain  from  offering  any  other  remarks  on  the  sub- 


*  Cooper. 


344 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ject  than  will  already  be  inferred  ;  namely,  that  the  whitish 
blue  copperas  ought  to  be  avoided  in  dyeing  blues  by 
means  of  the  blue  vat. 

Before  proceeding  further  we  will  point  out  some  impurities 
which  occasionally  exist  in  copperas,  and  which  are  very 
hurtful  in  the  blue  vat. 

IMPURITY  OF  COPPERAS. — A  very  common  impu- 
rity in  sulphate  of  iron  (copperas),  is  sulphate  of  alumina. 
The  deleterious  nature  of  this  salt  does  not  consist  in  its 
action  upon  the  indigo,  but  it  introduces  to  the  vat  a  good 
portion  of  sulphuric  acid  ;  and  as  it  forms  a  double  salt  with 
the  sulphate  of  iron — which  double  salt  combines  with  24 
equivalents  of  water — its  presence  may  account  for  the  vari- 
ous results  obtained  in  the  experiments  detailed  above,  with 
bad  copperas,  and  its  evil  effects  in  the  vat.  It  is,  no  doubt, 
the  presence  of  sulphate  of  alumina  that  renders  the  Scotch 
copperas  so  much  inferior  to  the  English.  The  presence  of 
alumina  may  be  detected  by  its  giving  the  peroxide  of  iron, 
when  precipitated,  as  already  described  by  ammonia  and 
filtered,  a  very  bulky  and  clayey  appearance.  If  this  pre- 
cipitate be  dissolved  in  muriatic  acid,  and  the  iron  again 
precipitated  by  caustic  potash,  added  in  excess,  and  filtered ; 
the  alumina  being  now  in  solution,  passes  through  the  filter, 
and  may  be  again  precipitated  by  adding  ammonia.  It  is  a 
bulky  white  precipitate.  The  presence  of  sulphate  of  zinc 
and  copper  may  be  detected  by  a  similar  process — the  iron 
being  peroxidized  and  precipitated  by  ammonia.  If  copper 
be  present  the  supernatant  liquor  has  a  blue  color ;  it  may 
also  be  detected  by  putting  a  piece  of  clean  iron  in  the  cop- 
peras— the  copper  is  deposited  in  the  metallic  state  on  the 
iron.  If  zinc  be  present,  and  a  stream  of  sulphureted  hy- 
drogen gas  passed  through  the  clear  filtered  liquor,  a  white 
precipitate  is  obtained.  This  latter  substance  is  very  seldom 
present  in  copperas.  The  deleterious  effects  of  these  two 
substances  are  of  the  same  nature  ;  they  hold  their  oxygen 
by  a  comparatively  feeble  attraction,  so  that  when  any  de- 
oxidizing substance  comes  in  contact  with  them  they  yield 
their  oxygen  to  it,  consequently  their  presence  in  the  blue  vat 


BLUE. 


345 


neutralizes  the  effects  of  the  sulphate  of  iron.  It  is  from  this 
property  that  these  salts  are  used  in  resist-work  in  calico- 
printing*  which  is  conducted  in  the  following"  manner : — 

A  certain  preparation,  the  best  we  believe,  the  sulphate  of 
copper  or  zinc,  mixed  either  with  flour  paste,  with  gum,  or 
with  pipe-clay  and  gum,  is  printed  on  the  calico,  of  any  pat- 
tern that  may  be  desired ;  when  this  is  sufficiently  dry,  the 
goods  are  then  dyed  in  the  blue  vat,  those  parts  of  the  piece 
which  are  printed  with  the  copper  or  zinc  will  not  be  dyed 
blue,  because  the  deoxidised  indigo  becomes  oxygenated  the 
moment  it  touches  the  copper,  by  its  yielding  its  oxygen  to 
the  indigo,  and  occasions  it  to  become  insoluble,  and  conse- 
quently incapable  of  forming  a  dye.\ 

THE  COMMON  BLUE  VAT. — For  the  gratification  of 
such  as  are  not  versed  in  the  manipulations  of  print-works 
and  dye-houses,  we  would  state,  that  where  piece-goods  are 
dyed  blue,  the  vats  are  necessarily  large,  being  generally 
about  three  feet  wide  by  five  feet  long,  and  eight  feet  deep, 
made  of  iron,  but  sometimes  of  stone, — these  are  sunk  int« 
the  ground  about  half  their  depth. 

The  goods  to  be  dyed  are  stretched  upon  a  frame,  when 
the  whole  is  lowered  into  the  vat.  Sometimes  these  frames 
are  furnished  with  rollers,  when,  instead  of  fixing  the  piece 
on  hooks,  it  is  passed  over  these  rollers  while  in  the  vat,  by 
which  means  long  pieces  are  dyed  perfectly  even  in  color. 

The  vats  for  yarn  or  skein  are  small,  being  generally  old 
wine  or  oil  pipes ;  these  are  also  sunk  about  half  their  depth 
into  the  ground.  Wooden  pins  are  put  through  the  skein, 
and  rest  upon  the  edge  of  the  vat,  the  skein  is  then  turned 
over,  the  one  half  dipping  in  the  liquor,  the  other  half  over 
the  pins.  The  time  of  this  operation  varies  according  to  the 
strength  of  the  vat.  The  operation  being  continued  some 
time,  the  skein  is  taken  out,  wrung,  and  exposed  to  the  air, 
dipped  again,  and  so  on,  by  alternately  dipping  and  exposing, 
till  the  requisite  shade  is  obtained. 

*  See  Calico-Printing,  Part  VI. 

t  According  to  Dumas'  theory,  the  hydrogen,  in  combination  with  the  indigo, 
unites  with  the  oxygen  of  the  copper  and  forms  water,  and  both  results  are  alike. 

44 


346  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

To  prepare  the  vat,  it  is  filled  to  within  a  few  inches  of  the 
mouth  with  water,  the  dyeing  ingredients  are  then  added — 
the  proportions  given  in  most  chemical  books,  are  1  part  (by 
weight)  indigo,  2  parts  sulphate  of  iron,  and  3  lime,  but  this 
proportion  of  lime  is  too  much,*  the  practical  dyer  does  not 
consider  his  vats  in  good  condition  when  this  proportion  is 
used.  The  following  proportions  are  considered  good  for 
preparing  one  of  these  small  vats,  assuming  that  all  the  in- 
gredients are  good : — 

8  pounds  of  indigo,  14  pounds  of  copperas,  and  from  18  to  20  (not  above  20) 
of  lime.  If  the  copperas  be  bad,  a  pound  or  even  two  pounds  more  of  it  may  be 
required  along  with  two  or  three  additional  pounds  of  lime,  to  have  the  same  re- 
sults. These  ingredients  being  put  in,  the  whole  is  well  stirred  every  two  or  three 
hours  during  the  day,  and,  after  settling  for  twelve  hours,  it  is  ready  for  use. 

PRUSSIATE  OF  POTASH. — We  have  on  several  occa 
sions  referred  to  compound  substances  which  combine  with 
bases,  and  in  other  respects  act  as  simple  bodies.  Such  sub- 
stances are  on  these  accounts  termed  salt  radicals.  One  of 
the  most  definite  of  these  is  cyanogen,  which  in  its  simple 
state  is  a  gaseous  body,  and  is  composed  of  two  of  carbon 
and  one  of  nitrogen.  It  does  not  exist  in  nature,  but  can  be 
readily  formed  by  bringing  its  elements  together  at  a  high 
temperature  in  contact  with  a  base  that  will  unite  with  it,  and 
will  remain  in  the  compound  state  under  the  circumstances. 
Thus,  when  any  organic  substance  containing  nitrogen  is 
calcined  with  potash,  the  nitrogen  and  carbon  combine  and 
form  cyanogen  which  unites  with  the  potassium  of  the  pot- 
ash, and  forms  cyanide  of  potassium.  This  is  the  condition 
in  which  it  is  generally  obtained,  and  its  union  with  other 
bases  is  effected  by  the  decomposition  of  that  compound  ;  as, 
for  instance,  if  we  add  a  solution  of  cyanide  of  potassium  to 
a  solution  of  nitrate  of  silver,  the  potassium  combines  with 
the  nitric  acid  and  the  cyanogen  with  the  silver,  forming  cya- 
nide of  silver,  a  dense  white  powder.    When  cyanogen  com- 


*  For  one  pound  of  indigo  three  pounds  of  copperas  are  taken,  and  four  pounds  of 
lime.  If  the  copperas  be  partially  peroxidized  somewhat  more  of  it  must  be  used. 
—  lire.    These  proportions  will  not  answer  well  in  practice,  as  above  stated. 


BLUE.  347 

bines  with  hydrogen,  which  it  does  with  facility,  it  forms 
prussic  or  hydrocyanic  acid. 

Cyanogen  is  remarkable  for  combining  with  other  elements 
and  forming  with  them  compounds  which  are  also  defi- 
nite salt  radicals  ;  the  principal  of  these  is  ferrocyanogen 
which  is  composed  of  three  of  cyanogen  and  one  of  iron. 
The  compounds  which  this  salt  radical  forms  with  other 
bases  are  distinguished  by  the  prefix  ferro.  Thus  when 
united  with  potassium,  it  forms  ferro-cyanide  of  potassium 
(prussiate  of  potash)  which  is  composed  of  one  of  ferro- 
cyanogen and  two  of  potassium.  The  prussiate  of  pot- 
ash is  prepared  on  the  large  scale  by  calcining  together 
dried  blood,  hoofs,  parings  of  horns,  hides,  old  woolen  rags, 
or  similar  material,  with  carbonate  of  potash,  in  an  iron  ves- 
sel ;  those  substances  are  generally  carbonised  or  burned  in 
large  cast  iron  cylinders  previous  to  being  used  with  the  pot- 
ash. If  the  animal  matters  are  used  without  being  sub- 
jected to  this  process,  they  are  mixed  in  the  ratio  of  about  8 
to  1  of  pearlash  ;  but  if  burned,  one  and  a  half  of  the  char- 
coal is  mixed  with  one  of  pearlash.  When  the  animal 
matters  are  used  without  being  charred,  the  calcining  pot  is 
left  open  to  allow  of  the  materials  being  stirred  and  the  nox- 
ious vapors  to  escape  ;  after  which  the  vessel  is  closed  and 
the  heat  is  increased.  This  is  continued  for  some  time,  and 
at  intervals  of  half  an  hour,  the  mouth  of  the  vessel  is 
uncovered  for  the  purpose  of  stirring  the  matter  within.  This 
process  is  continued  until  the  flame  ceases  to  rise  from  the 
surface,  and  the  materials  become  a  red  semifluid  mass, 
which  generally  takes  place  about  8  hours  after  the  pot  is 
closed.  The  molten  mass  is  scooped  out  with  iron  la- 
dles, and  allowed  to  cool.  The  theory  of  the  formation 
of  the  yellow  prussiate  will  be  easily  understood,  on  refer- 
ring to  what  has  been  said  of  cyanide  of  potassium.  The 
material  of  the  iron  pot  in  which  the  calcination  is  con- 
ducted, though  sometimes  iron  filings  are  added  for  the  pur- 
pose, combines  with  the  cyanogen  and  forms  the  salt  radical 
ferrocyanogen,  which  simultaneously  combines  with  potas- 
sium, forming  ferrocyanide  of  potassium.    When  the  mass 


348 


DYEING  AND  CALICO 


PRINTING. 


is  cold  it  is  dissolved  in  cold  water,  and  the  solution  is  fil- 
tered through  cloth.  Lest  any  cyanide  of  potassium  should 
remain  which  had  not  received  the  proportion  of  iron,  sul- 
phate of  iron  (copperas)  is  added  by  degrees  to  the  solution, 
so  long  as  the  Prussian  blue,  which  is  at  first  formed  on  add- 
ing the  iron,  is  redissolved.  The  whole  is  then  evaporated  to 
a  proper  consistency ;  after  which,  pieces  of  coarse  cord  are 
suspended  throughout  the  liquid,  upon  which,  as  nuclei,  crys- 
tals of  ferro-prussiate  are  formed  in  regular  heaps.  They  are 
of  a  beautiful  light  citron  yellow.  From  this  salt  all  other 
ferrocyanides  are  derived  as  precipitates  ;  those  of  the  metals 
are  formed  by  adding  a  salt  of  the  metal  to  a  solution  of  the 
prussiate.  The  following  are  the  appearances  of  a  few  of 
t'lose  precipitates,  corresponding  to  the  metals  employed  : — 

Protoxide  of  Manganese,  White,  turning  to  a  deep  red. 

Peroxide  of  Manganese,  Greenish  gray. 

Lead,  White  with  a  yellowish  hue. 

Peroxide  of  Iron,  Deep  blue. 

Protoxide  of  Iron,  White,  turning  blue  by  exposure. 

Copper,  Brown. 

Zinc,  White. 

Protoxide  of  Tin,  White. 

Peroxide  of  Tin.  Yellow. 

Each  of  these  precipitates  constitutes  the  ferrocyanide  of  the 
metal  used,  which  has  taken  the  place  of  the  potassium; 
they  are  all  insoluble  in  water,  and  where  a  color  can  be  ob- 
tained by  them,  they  are  suitable  for  a  dye,  although  the 
colors  dyed  by  the  yellow  prussiate  are  fugitive.  Every  al- 
kaline substance,  such  as  soap,  destroys  them,  and  they  are 
easily  affected  by  that  universal  destroyer  of  colors,  the  sun. 
The  principal  use  of  the  ferrocyanide  salt  in  the  dyehouse,  is 
for  dyeing  Prussian  blue. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PRUSSIAN  BLUE.— To 
dye  this  color,  the  goods  are  impregnated  with  a  persalt  of 
iron,  and  then  passed  through  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash. 

Some  dyers  are  in  the  habit,  when  dark  blue  is  wanted,  of 
putting  the  goods,  after  being  tightly  wrung  from  the  iron 
solution,  directly  into  the  prussiate  solution.  We  need  hard- 
ly say  that  this  is  waste  of  stuff,  as  it  requires  triple  the  quan- 


BLUE. 


349 


tity  of  prussiate.  When  a  dark  shade  of  blue  is  wanted  for 
yarn,  the  best  method  of  obtaining  it  is  the  following  :* — 

Pass  the  yarn  from  the  iron  solution  through  a  strong  solution  of  potash,  or 
soda.  Being  washed  well  from  this,  it  is  put  through  the  prussiate  solution ;  this 
is  the  method  adopted  for  dark  blues,  on  printed  calicos ;  but  for  fine  muslins,  and 
such  like,  which  require  to  be  finished  blue,  this  process  does  not  answer  so  well, 
as  the  goods  are  generally  colored. 

Very  little  cotton  yarn  is  dyed  Prussian  blue,  though  an 
immense  quantity  of  light  piece  goods  are  done  so,  requiring 
careful  management  to  have  them  equal  and  all  of  one  hue. 

In  treating  of  Mordants  (chapter  I.  of  this  Part,)  we  have 
described  the  method  of  preparing  the  solution  of  iron  for  the 
purpose  of  dyeing  Prussian  blue,  viz.,  to  dissolve  it  in  nitric 
acid.  A  little  of  this  nitrate  of  iron  is  put  into  a  vessel  full 
of  water,  and  well  mixed.  The  cloth  is  put  into  this,  and 
wrought  as  quickly  as  possible  by  the  process  of  edgeing : 

That  is,  catching  the  edge  of  the  piece  with  the  right  hand,  and  lifting  it  as  high 
as  the  arm  will  allow  while  the  left  hand  is  passed  down  along  the  edge,  till  the 
arms  are  at  full  stretch — the  left  hand  retaining  its  hold  of  the  piece,  while  the 
right  hand  lets  it  free,  the  piece  spreads  out  full  into  the  liquid.  The  left  hand  is 
then  raised  to  meet  the  right,  and  transfers  its  hold  to  it,  to  go  through  the  same  ope- 
ration. This  is  performed  so  rapidly,  that  a  good  edger  will  go  round  a  20  yard 
piece  half  a  dozen  times  in  a  few  minutes,  so  that  the  whole  surface  of  the  cloth 
gets  equally  exposed  to  the  liquor. 

Being  wrought  from  ten  to  fifteen  minutes  in  this  manner, 
in  the  iron  solution,  they  are  washed  through  two  or  three 
tubsfull  of  clean  cold  water,  which  takes  off  all  the  superflu- 
ous acid  and  iron.  Whether  the  cause  of  the  reception  of 
the  dye  be  an  attraction  of  the  material  of  the  cloth  for  the 
iron  or  the  simple  power  of  absorption  of  the  fibres,  we  shall 
not  stay  to  examine  here  ;  but  although  the  nitrate  of  iron  be 
an  exceedingly  soluble  salt  the  peroxide  of  iron  remains  fixed 
in  the  fibres,  having  abandoned  its  acid,  and  thus  no  wash- 
ing will  remove  it.    The  cloth  being  well  washed  from  the 

*  In  its  present  form,  this  beautiful  color  has  not  been  long  in  general  use  for 
application  to  calicoes.  The  color  obtained  by  the  mixture  formerly  employed, 
consisting  of  prussiate  of  potash  with  tartaric  or  sulphuric  acid,  without  any  addi- 
tion of  perchloride  of  tin  or  alum,  is  always  lighter  in  shade  and  less  vivid  than 
that  obtained  with  such  an  addition,  however  concentrated  the  solution  of  prus- 
siate of  potash. — Parnell. 


350 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


acid,  as  has  been  observed  before,  it  is  put  into  the  prussiate ; 
but,  as  has  been  observed,  unless  an  acid  be  added  to  the 
prussiate,  the  goods,  being  washed  and  put  in,  receive  no 
definite  color,  as  the  potassium  which  is  in  union  with  the 
ferrocyanogen,  prevents  it  from  combining  with  the  iron.  A 
small  quantity  of  sulphuric  acid  is  generally  added  to  the 
ferrocyanide  of  potassium  solution,  to  take  up  the  potassium, 
and  to  set  the  ferrocyanogen  at  liberty,  to  unite  with  the  iron 
upon  the  cloth  ;  this  forms  ferrocyanide  of  iron  or  Prussian 
blue,  and  constitutes  the  dye.  Considerable  care  should  be 
taken  in  adding  acid  to  the  prussiate,  otherwise  the  color  is 
liable  to  change,  becoming  gray  or  reddish  when  dried. 

The  following  mode  of  adding  sulphuric  acid  to  the  prus- 
siate, when  a  considerable  quantity  of  goods  are  to  be  dyed 
ut  once,  is  commonly  practiced  : — 

What  is  considered  the  proper  quantity  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash  is  dis- 
solved in  just  as  much  of  boiling  water  as  is  necessary.  To  this  solution  a  quan- 
tity of  sulphuric  acid  is  added,  so  as  to  make  it  strongly  acid.  The  mixture  thus 
prepared  is  added  to  the  prussiate  tub,  as  may  be  required. 

This  process  for  adding  the  sulphuric  acid  is  exceedingly 
objectionable,  as  it  causes  the  evolution  of  prussic  acid,  which 
may  be  detected  by  the  pungent  smell  it  excites.  Now,  in 
proportion  to  the  escape  of  that  gas  will  be  the  loss  of  the 
dyeing  property  of  the  prussiate.  If  three  parts  of  acid  be 
added  to  seven  of  yellow  prussiate,  the  loss  will  amount  to  one 
half,  while  the  remaining  half  would  be  so  changed  in  its  prop- 
erties as  to  produce  but  a  bad  blue  ;  thus  the  dyer  must  use 
an  additional  quantity  of  prussiate,  and  he  produces  but  an 
indifferent  color. 

The  proper  method  of  using  the  acid  is  to  dissolve  the 
prussiate  in  hot  water,  and  to  add  the  necessary  quantity  of 
this  to  the  water-tub  in  which  the  goods  are  to  be  dyed  ;  pre- 
viously to  putting  in  the  cloth,  a  few  drops  of  sulphuric  acid 
are  added,  just  sufficient  to  be  perceptible  to  the  taste,  or, 
what  is  a  much  better  test,  sufficient  to  redden  blue  litmus 
paper.  The  goods  being  wrought  for  some  time  in  this  mix- 
ture, are  washed  in  clean  water,  having  a  small  quantity  of 
alum  in  solution.    For  light  shades  of  sky-blue,  they  should 


BLUE. 


351 


not  be  dried  from  the  alum  solution,  as  there  is  a  great  ten- 
dency to  assume  a  lavender  hue.  A  better  plan  is  to  employ 
two  tubs  of  water,  the  one  being  touched  with  alum,  and  the 
other  pure  for  washing  from  it.  Cloths  dyed  by  the  prussiate 
should  be  exposed  to  a  very  dry  atmosphere  when  hung  up 
to  be  dried. 

In  dyeing  blues  with  yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  it  is  essen- 
tial that  the  iron  salt  employed  should  be  a  persalt.  Hence 
the  reason  that  nitrate  of  iron,  rather  than  sulphate,  is  used. 
If  the  iron  be  dissolved  in  sulphuric  or  muriatic  acid,  it  would 
not  yield  a  blue  with  yellow  prussiate  of  potash  ;  but  if  either 
of  these  solutions  be  raised  to  a  boiling  heat,  and  nitric  acid 
added  gradually  till  the  red  fumes  cease  to  be  given  off,  we 
would  then  obtain  the  persulphate,  or  permuriate  of  iron, 
and  at  a  much  less  expense  than  the  nitrate,  besides  being 
much  better  adapted  for  many  light  shades  of  Prussian  blue ; 
and  far  superior  for  dyeing  lavenders,  lilacs,  &c,  with  saf- 
flower. — (See  next  article.) 

If  a  current  of  chlorine  gas  be  passed  through  a  strong 
solution  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  till  the  solution  changes 
to  a  reddish  color,  and  when  a  drop  of  it  added  to  nitrate  of 
iron  gives  no  precipitate,  there  is  formed  chloride  of  potassium, 
and  a  salt  differing  materially  from  yellow  prussiate.  The 
solution  being  evaporated,  this  salt  is  obtained  in  beautiful 
ruby-red  crystals,  termed,  from  their  color,  red  prussiate  of 
potash.  This  substance  is  well  adapted  for  many  operations 
in  dyeing,  but  it  is  too  expensive  for  general  use.  It  yields 
the  following  colors  with  the  salts  of  the  different  metals 
undernamed : — 

Bismuth,   Pale  yellow. 

Cadmium,   Yellow. 

Cobalt,   Dark-brown  red. 

Copper,   Yellowish-green. 

Protosalt  of  iron,         .....  Deep-blue. 

Persalts  of  iron,   No  precipitate. 

Manganese,         ......  Brown. 

Mercury,   Red-brown . 

Nickel,   Yellow-green. 

Tin,   White. 

Zinc,   .       .  Orange-yellow. 


352  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

It  will  be  observed  by  this  table,  that  the  salts  of  iron  which 
yield  a  blue  with  yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  give  no  color 
with  the  red  prussiate  ;  and  the  protosalt  of  iron,  which  gives 
only  a  gray  with  yellow  prussiate,  yields  a  deep  blue  with  red 
prussiate. 

Yellow  prussiate  of  potash  is  also  used  for  dyeing  shades 
of  light  brown  with  salts  of  copper.  It  is  also  much  used 
for  dyeing  dark  mazarines  and  other  shades  of  blue  upon 
woolen,  cotton,  and  velvet.  By  a  very  ingenious  process  of 
fixing  a  deep  blue  without  any  previous  preparation  of  iron, 
it  is  principally  used  in  calico-printing,  and  is  effected  by  a 
mixture  of  yellow  prussiate,  sulphuric  acid,  and  some  of 
the  vegetable  acids,  and  salts  of  tin. 

The  process  for  obtaining  this  beautiful  color  upon  velvets, 
has  been  but  recently  introduced,  and  is  as  yet  not  much 
known.  It  seems  to  depend  upon  the  fixing  of  what  is 
known  as  Everett's  salt  upon  the  goods.  When  an  acid  is 
added  to  prussiate  of  potash,  the  greater  portion  of  the  potas- 
sium is  taken  up  by  the  acid,  but  the  iron  and  a  part  of  the 
cyanogen  remain,  which  unite  and  form  a  compound  of  two 
of  cyanide  of  iron  and  one  of  cyanide  of  potassium.  This 
salt  is  yellow,  but  rapidly  absorbs  oxygen,  becomes  green, 
and  then  passes  into  a  deep  blue  color. 

SAFFLOWER  AND  PRUSSIAN  BLUE.— The  most 
beautiful  lilacs,  puces,  and  lavenders*  are  obtained  by  saf- 
flower  and  Prussian  blue ;  but  it  is  one  of  the  most  difficult 
colors  to  produce  of  equal  shade.  The  goods  are  generally 
dyed  a  blue  first  by  nitrate  of  iron  and  prussiate  of  potash 
(see  last  article),  and  then  put  through  the  safflower  solution, 
previously  made  acid  ;  but  the  rapidity  with  which  the  cloth 
takes  up  the  red,  renders  it  almost  impossible  to  get  a  per- 
fectly even  dye.  Another  method  is  to  dye  the  cloth  in  the 
first  instance  pink,  and  then  to  dye  it  blue.  This  method 
gives  a  more  equal  dye,  but  the  mode  is  liable  to  serious  ob- 

*  A  very  good  lavender  may  be  obtained  in  the  following  manner : — Bottom 
with  indigo,  and  then  pass  through  a  bath  of  barwood  spirits,  as  described  in  chap- 
ter I.  of  this  Part,  article  Barwood  Red  Spirits.  The  goods  are  now  to  be  passed 
through  a  bath  of  logwood  liquor.    Redden  with  alum  or  the  red  bath. 


BLUE. 


353 


jections :  the  nitrate  of  iron  used  has  always  free  acid  which 
materially  destroys  the  red  of  the  safflower,  and  even  al- 
though the  nitrate  of  iron  were  neutral,  this  evil  is  not  over- 
come, and  the  resulting  color  has  not  the  same  beauty  as 
that  blued  first ;  and,  besides  this,  a  portion  of  the  safflower 
is  dissolved  by  the  nitrate  of  iron,  thereby  creating  considera- 
ble loss.  These  difficulties  may  be  almost  wholly  avoided 
by  using  instead  of  the  nitrate  the  persulphate  of  iron,  which 
may  be  prepared  in  the  following  manner  : — 

Dissolve  some  protosulphate  of  iron  (copperas)  in  water,  and  bring  it  to  the 
boiling  point ;  then  add  nitric  acid  by  degrees,  till  all  effervescence  ceases,  or  no 
red  fumes  are  given  off.    By  this  means  the  iron  is  peroxidized. 

This  operation  must  not  be  performed  in  any  metallic  ves- 
sel on  account  of  the  property  which  persalt  has  of  dissolving 
all  metals.  To  this  peroxidized  salt-solution,  ammonia  is 
added  as  long  as  any  precipitate  falls ;  this  is  now  well 
washed  with  hot  wTater,  filling  up  the  vessel,  allowing  the 
precipitate  to  settle,  throwing  off  the  clear  liquor,  filling  again 
with  hot  water,  and  so  on ;  three  or  four  times  will  com- 
monly be  sufficient.  A  little  ammonia  remaining  does  no 
harm.  To  the  precipitate  is  added  a  little  sulphuric  acid, 
which  dissolves  the  peroxide  of  iron,  and  any  slight  quan- 
tity of  ammonia  which  yet  remains ;  by  a  little  evaporation 
the  whole  will  crystalize  in  lavender  colored  crystals.  If 
crystalization  be  attained,  the  crystals  may  be  used,  dissolved 
in  water ;  if  not,  a  little  of  the  solution  may  be  taken,  and 
the  operation  of  dyeing  conducted  as  with  nitrate  of  iron.  A 
little  free  acid  in  this  salt  does  no  harm. — (See  Calico  Print- 
ing, Part  VI.) 

45 


CHAPTER  VI. 


OF  ORANGE. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  ORANGE  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Splendid  Processes  of  Dyeing  Orange  on  Cotton — Pre- 
cautions to  be  observed — Anotta,  Improved  method  of  Dyeing  with — Remarks 
on  this  Coloring  Substance — Salmon  and  Nankeen  Colors. 

Preliminary  observations. — Orange  color  is  the  most  pow- 
erful of  the  secondaries,  and  is  a  compound  of  yellow  and 
red,  in  proportions  of  three  of  yellow  to  five  of  red.  Between 
these  two  colors  it  appears  in  the  prismatic  spectrum,  rain- 
bow, and  other  natural  phenomena.  They  are,  therefore,  its 
melodizing;  colors,  and  its  contrasting  color  is  the  primary 
blue.  Orange  is  the  extreme  point  of  warmth  in  coloring,  as 
blue  is  of  coldness ;  they,  therefore,  form  a  perfect  contrast  in 
this  respect,  as  they  do  in  their  numerical  proportional  power, 
being  eight  to  eight.  The  mixture  of  red  with  yellow  adds 
power  to  the  native  warmth  of  the  red ;  orange  is,  therefore, 
conjointly  in  regard  to  light  and  color,  most  powerful  in  its 
effect  upon  the  eye.  From  its  combination  with  green  arises 
the  hue  citrine,  and  with  purple  that  of  russet. 

Orange,  like  the  other  two  secondaries,  has  great  variety 
of  tone,  according  to  the  predominance  of  either  of  its  com- 
ponent parts.  As  it  passes  towards  yellow,  by  a  predomi- 
nance of  that  color  in  its  mixture,  pure  blue  no  longer  forms 
its  proper  contrast,  but  tones  of  bluish  purple  advancing  to- 
wards perfect  purple,  as  the  orange  color  retires  into  yellow. 
On  the  other  hand,  when  the  orange  color  advances  towards 
a  reddish  tone,  bluish-green  becomes  its  proper  contrasting 
color — the  blue  approaching  the  perfect  secondary,  as  the 
orange  approaches  the  primary. 

Although  orange  is  perhaps  the  most  powerful  of  all  colors, 


ORANGE. 


355 


yet  it  possesses  a  mellowness  and  richness  which  renders  it 
one  of  the  most  effective  in  all  general  arrangements.  It 
should,  however,  next  to  yellow,  be  employed  with  a  very 
sparing  hand ;  for  it  is,  as  well  as  that  primary  and  red,  of- 
fensive to  the  eye  when  viewed  alone,  and  unresolved  by  a 
proper  proportion  of  its  contrasting  and  melodizing  hues. 
The  various  beautiful  tints  produced  by  the  dilution  of  orange, 
are  the  most  useful  in  heightening  all  ornamental  coloring, 
amongst  which  that  termed  gold  color  is  pre-eminent. 

Suppose  orange  to  be  the  archeus  or  key-note  adopted  for 
an  arrangement  of  colors,  either  in  the  decoration  of  an 
apartment,  or  in  the  design  of  a  carpet,  or  other  piece  of 
manufacture,  the  blue  should  be  subordinate,  either  in  inten- 
sity or  quantity  ;  and  this  subordination  in  intensity  should 
be  in  shade  rather  than  tint,  or  by  neutralizing  the  blue  by 
the  admixture  of  a  small  portion  of  orange  color. 

In  the  medial  colors  employed  in  an  arrangement  of  this 
character,  the  deep  rich  tones  of  russet,  citron,  and  brown, 
should  predominate,  relieved  occasionally  by  the  deepest 
shades  of  indigo.  Black  and  white  are  both  out  of  tone  in 
such  an  arrangement,  especially  the  latter. 

Pure  orange,  from  its  great  power,  is  not  often  employed  in 
decoration,  yet  many  of  its  hues  are  the  best  adapted  for  win- 
dow curtains,  chair  seats,  and  other  furniture,  where  gor- 
geousness  and  splendor  are  desirable.  The  gold  and  giraffe 
hues  so  employed,  along  with  the  cool  emerald  tint  of  green 
on  the  walls,  produce,  when  properly  harmonized  by  their  ac- 
companiments, one  of  the  most  pleasing  effects  in  ordinary 
decoration.  In  this  case,  however,  the  green  is  the  ruling 
color,  and  such  an  arrangement  will  therefore  admit  of  all 
such  hues  and  tints  being  introduced  as  harmonize  with  that 
color. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  ORANGE. — Chrome  orange 
is  obtained  by  fixing  upon  the  goods  the  sub-chromate  of  lead 
(described  in  chapter  IV.  of  this  Part).  This  is  effected  in 
the  following  manner : — 

The  goods  are  first  dyed  a  deep  yellow,  and  then  passed  through  a  strong  hot 
alkaline  solution,  which  combines  with  a  portion  of  the  chromic  acid,  and  leavea 


356 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  sub-chromate  of  lead  upon  the  cloth.  But  the  method  for  dyeing  the  yellow 
for  this  purpose,  is  more  consistent  than  the  ordinary  process  for  producing 
yellow. 

We  have  already*  alluded  to  the  preparation  of  sub  or 
basic  salts  of  lead,  and  to  the  proper  proportions  and  the 
method  of  obtaining  them,  with  their  use  in  dyeing  in  pref- 
erence to  the  ordinary  salt  for  heavy  colors.  We  will  now 
give  the  method  of  preparing  them  in  the  dye-house,  with  the 
best  method  of  dyeing  orange,  and  which  is  as  follows : — 

To  dye  a  hundred  pounds  of  cotton,  301bs.  of  brown  sugar  of  lead,  and  171bs. 
of  litharge,  are  put  into  a  boiler  with  about  12  gallons  of  water,  and  boiled  to- 
gether for  an  hour  or  so,  until  the  litharge  is  dissolved ;  then  a  quantity  of  lime, 
from  one  to  two  pounds,  is  added,  any  sediment  is  allowed  to  settle,  and  the  clear 
fluid  drawn  off  and  put  into  a  tub  for  the  purpose ;  I21bs.  bichromate  of  potash  is 
dissolved  in  another  tub.  Two  other  tubs,  capable  of  allowing  10  lbs  of  yarn  to 
be  wrought  in  them  with  freedom,  are  filled,  one  with  water,  to  which  a  little  so- 
lution of  lead  is  added,  and  the  other  with  lime-water ;  10  lbs.  of  the  yarn  (a  bun- 
dle) is  now  wrought  for  some  time  through  the  tub  containing  the  lead,  wrung 
out  and  put  through  the  lime-water,  a  little  more  lead  is  added,  another  bundle  is 
passed  through  the  same  tub,  renewing  the  lime-water  each  time.  The  whole  are 
operated  upon  two  or  three  times,  according  to  the  depth  of  orange  wanted.  The 
bundles  are  next  put  through  a  tub  of  water,  to  which  is  added  some  of  the  solu- 
tion of  bichromate  of  potash,t  and  then  through  the  lead  solution.  The  solution 
of  lead  is  generally  "renewed  at  this  stage  of  the  operation.  After  being  all  put 
through,  they  are  again  passed  through  the  chrome.  A  saturated  solution  of 
newly  dissolved  lime  is  brought  to  the  boiling  point,  the  yarn  is  now  wrought  in 
this,  either  by  drawing  some  off  in  tubs,  or  by  the  most  convenient  method  that 
circumstances  will  allow,  until  the  color  is  changed  to  a  deep  orange  or  scarlet. 
It  is  then  taken  out,  passed  through  another  tub  filled  with  boiling  hot  water,  to 
which  is  added  a  small  quantity  of  a  solution  of  soap,  soda,  and  oil,  wrung  out 
and  dried  at  a  high  temperature. 

The  raising  of  the  orange,  as  the  hot  liming  is  termed,  is 
the  most  trying  operation.  If  the  lead  has  not  been  prop- 
erly prepared,  or  if  there  be  any  mismanagement  in  the  ope- 
ration of  fixing  it  upon  the  fibre,  the  hot  lime  will  take  all 
the  color  off,  leaving  but  a  red  salmon  shade,  or  it  may  come 


*  See  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  and  Appendix,  article  Acetate  of  Lead. 

t  Bichromate  of  potash  has  been  very  extensively  used  of  late  as  a  mordant  for 
•j.  variety  of  colors  upon  woolen  goods,  and  is  entirely  superseding  several  of  the 
old  processes  of  dyeing  many  of  the  ordinary  shades,  which  were  very  tedious  in 
manipulation. 


ORANGE. 


357 


off  in  parts.  Several  causes  operate  to  produce  these  re- 
sults, which  we  have  not  space  to  detail  here  at  present.* 
Oranges  being  once  done  wrong,  they  are  very  difficult  to  re- 
cover. 

ORANGE  WITH  ANOTTA.— Anotta  contains  two  color- 
ing matters ;  one  yellow,  the  other  red.  They  are  barely 
soluble  in  water,  but  easily  in  alkalies,  and  are  by  this  means 
prepared  for  dyeing.  The  alkali  used  is  carbonate  of  soda  or 
potash,  but  common  soft  soap  does  equally  well,  and  for  cer- 
tain light  shades  upon  silk  and  cotton,  is  superior.  A  quan- 
tity of  anotta  is  prepared  at  a  time,  and  kept  as  a  sort  of 
stock  liquor ;  but  the  practice  is  bad  as  it  soon  becomes  stale, 
and  loses  a  great  portion  of  its  dyeing  properties ;  it  should 
be  used  when  newly  prepared.    It  is  prepared  as  follows : — 

Into  a  boiler  capable  of  containing  from  ten  to  twelve  gallons  of  water,  is  put 
10  lbs.  weight  of  anotta,  2  lbs.  of  carbonate  of  soda,  and  2  lbs.  of  soft  soap,  the 
whole  boiled  together  until  the  anotta  is  all  dissolved. 

Cloth  put  into  this  solution  will  be  dyed  a  dark  orange, 
and  every  tint  of  shade  from  an  orange  to  a  light  cream  color 
may  be  dyed  by  this  solution,  by  merely  using  it  less  or  more 
diluted  according  to  the  shade  required ;  the  cloth  requires  no 
previous  preparation ;  but  for  light  shades,  the  color  is  bright- 
ened by  having  a  little  soap  dissolved  in  the  water  where  they 
are  dyed :  in  this  case  the  goods  are  merely  wrought  in  the 
liquor  for  a  little,  wrung  out  and  dried.  The  addition  of  acids 
turns  the  colors  dyed  by  anotta  to  a  yellowish  red,  so  that  by 
passing  a  piece  of  cloth  dyed  orange  with  anotta,  through  a 
little  acid  water,  it  is  turned  into  a  scarlet,  and  so  on  down  to 
a  light  salmon  color. 

It  is  to  be  regretted,  that  all  the  colors  dyed  by  anotta  are 
exceedingly  fugitive ;  and  although  neither  acids  nor  alka- 
lies can  completely  remove  the  colors  given  by  this  substance 
from  the  cloth,  yet  they  are  constantly  changing  and  fading 
by  exposure  to  the  air  and  light,  and  consequently  anotta  is 
very  little  used  to  produce  a  dye  by  itself  in  a  cotton  dye- 
house,  but  as  an  auxiliary,  or  what  dyers  term,  giving  a  bot- 

*  See  chapter  VII.,  next  chapter,  Processes  of  Dyeing  Green  on  Cotton. 


358 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


torn  to  colors ;  as  in  the  case  of  scarlet,  the  cloth  is  first  dyed 
orange  by  anotta,  and  a  crimson  dyed  above  it  by  sqfflower, 
which  together  produces  a  beautiful  scarlet. 

It  is  used  in  considerable  quantity  for  dyeing  silk  and 
wool  the  various  shades  of  orange,  salmon,  nankeen,  &c. ; 
the  objection,  just  referred  to,  respecting  its  use  for  cotton  is 
not  so  applicable  to  silk  and  woolen,  probably  owing  to  the 
superior  affinity  that  animal  substances  have  for  dyeing  agents, 
when  compared  to  vegetable  substances. 

Anotta  is  eminently  fitted  for  dyeing  the  shades  alluded  to 
above  upon  goods  of  mixed  quality,  such  as  Canton  crape, 
Batiste,  and  all  such  cloth  composed  of  cotton  and  silk,  cotton 
and  wool,  silk  and  wool, — a  kind  of  goods  which  require  a 
considerable  experience  in  the  arts,  to  be  able  to  produce  an 
equality  of  every  color  upon  the  different  materials.* — (See 
chapter  III.,  Part  I. ;  see  also  chapter  IV.,  of  this  Part,  and 
chapter  III.  of  Part  V.) 


*  The  best  method  of  dyeing  both  silk  and  cotton  with  anotta  or  safflower  is  by- 
wincing  the  piece  in  an  imperfectly  neutralized  alkaline  infusion  of  the  dye-stuff, 
which  contains  the  coloring  matter  in  a  state  of  feeble  suspension,  readily  precipi- 
tated on  a  solid  body  presenting  a  finely  divided  surface,  such  as  cloth.  The  par- 
tial neutralization  of  the  alkali  in  this  process  is  effected  by  a  very  weak  acid,  or 
an  acidulous  salt,  such  as  bitartrate  of  potash  (cream  of  tartar). — Pamcll. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


OF  GREEN. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  GREEN  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  Observations — Processes  of  Dyeing  Green  on  Cotton — Precautions 
to  be  observed — Preparations  of  Chemic  for  Cotton  Dyeing — Remarks  on  this 
Process — Mistaken  Notions  of  Dyers  generally  on  Dyeing  Greens,  and  the 
Preparation  of  Chemic  for  Cotton  Dyeing — Green  on  Cotton  with  Fustic  as  the 
Yellowing  Substance — Drabs,  Fawns,  Olives,  and  Iron  Browns. 

Preliminary  observations. — Green  is  the  medial  color  of 
the  secondaries,  being  a  compound  of  yellow  and  blue,  in  the 
proportions  of  three  of  yellow  to  eight  of  blue.  Its  melodi- 
zing tones  being  these  two  primaries,  and  its  contrasting 
color  red.  As  red  is  the  most  decided  and  powerful  of  the 
primaries,  so  green  is  the  most  neutral  and  soft  of  the  second- 
aries, and  the  most  pleasing  and  agreeable  of  all  decided 
colors  to  the  eye.  It  is  unlike  the  other  two  secondaries  in 
this  respect — that,  in  its  approximation  to  either  of  its  com- 
ponent parts,  it  produces  no  other  distinct  denomination  of 
color ;  all  its  varieties  of  tone  retaining  the  same  name. 
From  the  union  of  green  with  orange  arises  the  lightest  of 
the  hues,  citrine ;  and  from  that  with  purple  the  deepest,  olive 
color — to  which  it  is  particularly  allied. 

Green  is  nature's  favorite  color,  prevailing  to  a  far  greater 
extent  in  the  vegetable  kingdom  than  any  other.  By  a  be- 
neficent exercise  of  the  Divine  wisdom,  it  is  exhibited  in  its 
greatest  intensity  and  depth  when  the  sun's  rays  are  most 
powerful,  thereby  counteracting  the  intensity  of  their  reflec- 
tion, and  refreshing  the  eye  by  its  soft  and  soothing  influ- 
ence. Green,  however,  seldom  appears  in  vegetation  in  its 
primitive  purity — hence  the  beautiful  accordance  between  the 


360 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


green  of  the  landscape  and  the  blue  of  the  sky,  assisted  by 
the  intervention  of  the  warm  and  neutral  gray  which  pre- 
vails immediately  in  the  distance  in  the  one  and  the  horizon 
of  the  other. 

Of  all  decided  colors,  green  may  be  used  with  most  free- 
dom in  manufactures.  In  carpets,  especially,  it  should  al- 
most always  preponderate.  They  receive  the  rays  of  light 
more  directly  during  the  day  than  any  other  part  of  the  fur- 
niture or  decoration ;  and  this  color  is  not  only  in  that  light 
most  pleasing,  but  also  relieves  and  harmonizes  others  more 
generally  in  its  various  hues  than  any  other  color.  Its  bright 
and  vivid  hues  and  tints  are  easily  neutralized,  and  seldom 
produce  crudity  or  harshness  of  effect  in  any  arrangement. 
Rich  and  deep  tones  of  green,  especially  when  neutralized 
towards  a  tertiary  hue,  harmonize  with  and  give  value  to  all 
denominations  of  warm  colors.  Its  cooler  hues  and  shades 
should,  however,  be  used  with  more  caution  ;  for  they  are 
apt  to  appear  blackish  and  heavy.  The  blue,  no  doubt,  pre- 
dominates in  them  to  the  same  extent  that  it  does  in  the 
hues  of  purple  called  indigo,  yet  they  have  not  the  same 
clearness.  „ 

The  effect  of  green  is  much  deteriorated  in  artificial  light, 
from  the  cause  already  explained  in  the  treating  of  yellow. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  GREEN.— Chrome  greens 
are  dyed  in  the  same  manner  as  the  yellow,*  the  goods  being 
previously  dyed  blue  by  means  of  the  blue  vat.  For  dye- 
ing green,  nitrate  of  lead  is  never  used,  as  anything  that 
tends  to  redden  the  hue  is  carefully  avoided,  so  that  the 
goods  are  not  allowed  to  stand  for  any  time  out  of  the  solu- 
tion of  the  bichromate,  yet  with  all  the  care  that  is  used 
there  is  much  difficulty  in  avoiding  brown  blotches  and  light 
spots.  This  has  been  alluded  to  in  the  last  chapter  (VI.) ; 
but  we  may  add  here,  that  if  the  lead  were  reduced  to  the 
state  of  an  oxide  upon  the  goods  previous  to  being  put  into 
the  bichromate  of  potash,  and  no  acid  added  to  the  chrome 
solution,  there  would  be  neither  brown  nor  light  spots  upon 


*  Described  in  chapter  IV.  of  this  Part. 


GREEN. 


361 


the  goods,  and  with  ordinary  care  the  color  would  be  perfectly 
uniform.* 

The  method  practised  by  the  majority  of  English  and 
Scotch  dyers  for  obtaining  chrome-green  on  cotton  is  as  fol- 
lows : — 

1.  50  lbs.  of  yarn.  Dye  the  yarn  blue  in  the  cold  indigo  vat  according  to  the 
depth  of  shade  required.    Clear  in  warm  water. 

2.  Boil  20  lbs.  sugar  of  lead  till  dissolved — put  in  5  lbs.  litharge,  and  boil  40 
minutes — draw  the  fire,  and  give  l£  lbs.  slacked  lime — stir  up  and  then  allow  to 
settle. 

3.  Make  up  a  tub  with  cold  water — Take  the  clear  of  No.  2.  just  described,  and  add 
of  the  liquor  till  it  stands  2|  by  "Twaddell's  hydrometer," — enter  the  first  ten 
lbs.  of  yarn,  give  five  turns.  Wring  out,  and  put  it  in  the  frame.  Go  on  with 
the  next  bundle  of  yarn  in  the  same  way — keeping  the  tub  always  at  2£,  as  above 
directed. 

i.  The  goods  are  now  passed  through  the  tub  (3)  as  before,  making  the  last 
bundle  go  first,  and  keeping  the  tub  at  the  same  strength. 

5.  Make  up  a  tub  with  cold  water  with  half  a  pound  of  chrome  to  every  10  lbs. 
of  yarn — stir  up  and  enter — give  five  turns.  Wring  out,  wash  off  with  a  little 
clear  lead,  and  dry. 

PREPARATION  OF  CHEMIC.— The  method  of  pre- 
paring chemic  for  dyeing  green  upon  light  cotton  goods,  is, 
perhaps,  the  nicest  of  all  its  preparations.!  The  acid  solu- 
tion of  indigo  is  put  into  about  twenty  gallons  of  boiling 
water  to  the  pound  of  indigo.  Exact  measurement  is  not 
material.  In  mixing  this  solution  with  the  hot  water,  it  is 
known  whether  the  indigo  and  the  acid  are  in  complete  com- 
bination ;  if  they  are  not,  the  acid  sputters  and  boils  in  the 
same  manner  as  vitriol  does  when  poured  into  hot  water  ;  if 
they  are  combined,  it  goes  down  into  the  hot  water  as  calm 
as  water  would  do  poured  into  oil.  To  this  mixture,  finely 
pounded  chalk  or  whitening,  is  added  by  degrees,  until  the 
acid  is  exactly  neutralized.  This  is  the  most  particular  part 
of  the  operation.  Although  a  pound  of  whitening  to  the 
pound  of  acid  used,  comes  very  near  the  proportion,  yet  there 
are  so  many  circumstances  which  may  alter  measured  pro- 
portions that  they  cannot  be  relied  upon.    Were  the  acid 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Acetate  of  Lead. 

T  See  chapter  V.  of  this  Part,  article  Preparation  of  Chemic. 

46 


362 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


property  to  prevail  in  the  least,  it  would  destroy  the  yellow 
upon  the  cloth  to  be  dyed  green  ;  and  were  the  alkaline  mat- 
ter predominant,  it  would  brown  the  yellow,  and  the  green 
would  assume  a  blackish-olive  shade.  Thus  the  beauty  of 
the  colors  depends  upon  the  dyer  being  careful  just  to  stop  at 
the  turning  point.  The  only  method  employed  by  dyers  for 
determining  the  point  of  neutrality  is  the  taste ;  and  this, 
from  many  circumstances  which  we  need  not  enumerate,  is 
liable  to  error ;  and  when  the  dyer  is  deceived,  the  results 
are  very  annoying,  and  also  expensive.  Were  very  delicately 
prepared  blue  and  red  litmus  papers  used,  the  results  would 
be  much  more  certain.  However,  the  reader  may  be  aston- 
ished when  we  inform  him,  that  scarcely  one  instance  out 
of  ten  goes  wrong  from  this  cause.  Some  dyers  use  car- 
bonated alkalies,  such  as  soda  and  potash,  to  neutralize  their 
acid ;  and  no  doubt  when  any  of  these  are  used,  the  sedi- 
ment at  the  bottom  is  much  less  ;  but  we  have  always 
thought  this  owing  to  the  salts  formed  by  these  alkalies  be- 
ing dissolved  in  the  blue  solution,  and  have  invariably  found 
that  the  green  color  was  not  so  good,  especially  if  bark  was 
the  yellowing  substance.  The  process  of  dyeing  greens  by 
this  sort  of  prepared  chemic  is  as  follows  : — 

The  goods,  after  being  well  boiled  and  washed,  are  put  through  a  dilute  solu- 
tion of  pyroligneous  acid  of  sp.  gr.  1*035,  that  is,  7  of  Twaddell,  and  washed 
from  this  through  hot  water;  they  are  then  wrought  through  a  decoction  of 
quercitron  bark.*  When  sufficiently  yellow  for  the  shade  of  green  required,  they 
are  wrought  through  a  quantity  of  chemic  mixed  with  cold  water ;  wrung  from 
this  and  dried. 

GREEN  WITH  FUSTIC,  BLUE  VAT,  &c. — A  good 
deal  of  cotton  is  dyed  green  by  fustic,  especially  yarn.  The 
yarn  is  first  dyed  blue  by  the  blue  vat,  and  then  passed 
through  a  little  pyrolignite  of  alumina  ;  it  is  next  wrought  in 
a  hot  decoction  of  fustic,  which  communicates  a  beautiful 
rich  shade  of  green. 

Fustic  is  also  used  along  with  some  kinds  of  Brazil-wood 
to  give  a  richness  to  red  colors  ;  and  also  as  an  ingredient  in 


*  If  fustic  is  the  yellowing  substance  used,  alum  is  a  better  mordant. — See 
chapter  I.  of  this  Part. 


GREEN. 


363 


drabs,  fawns,  olives,  and  what  is  termed  iron  browns.  The 
method  of  dyeing  dark  fawns  is  as  follows  : — 

The  goods  are  first  dyed  a  good  deep  orange,  by  passing  them  through  a  solu- 
tion of  anotta,  and  washed  from  this ;  a  tub  is  then  prepared  with  a  mixture  of 
sumac,  fustic,  and  a  little  logwood ;  the  goods  are  wrought  in  this  for  some  time ; 
after  this,  a  little  copperas  is  added ;  the  goods  are  again  immersed,  and  wrought 
for  six  or  seven  minutes ;  they  are  then  washed  and  put  into  another  tub  con- 
taining fustic,  with  a  very  little  logwood  and  Brazil-wood ;  after  working  a  little 
this  is  raised  with  alum,  then  washed  and  dried.  The  relative  quantity  of  the 
ingredients  used  must  of  course  be  regulated  according  to  the  depth  and  particular 
hue  wanted. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


OF  PURPLE. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PURPLE  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  observations — Processes  of  Dyeing  Purple — Mercer's  Patent  Purple 
Liquor — King  of  Purples,  De  Normandy's  Patent — Violets — Buffs,  &c. 

Preliminary  observations. — Purple  arises  from  the  union 
of  red  and  blue,  in  the  proportions  of  five  of  red  to  eight  of 
blue,  and  forms  the  proper  contrast  to  pure  yellow.  The  two 
colors  of  which  it  is  compounded  are  its  melodizing  tones. 
Although  red  is  one  of  its  component  parts,  purple  is  retiring 
in  its  effect,  being  the  darkest  of  the  secondary  colors.  In 
combination  with  green  it  produces  that  soft  and  useful  hue, 
olive ;  and  with  orange  the  most  powerful  of  this  class, 
russet. 

Purple,  like  the  other  two  compounds,  has  various  tones 
according  to  the  predominance  of  one  or  the  other  of  its  ele- 
ments ;  but  these  are  bounded  in  its  approach  to  red  by  crim- 
son, and  towards  blue  by  indigo.  Its  tints  have  also  names 
peculiar  to  themselves,  such  as  lilac,  peach-blossom,  French 
white,  (fee. 

These  primary  and  secondary  colors  form  the  full  scale  of 
the  chromatist,  and  have  all  proper  names  except  orange, 
which  is  so  called  from  its  resemblance  to  the  color  of  that 
fruit.  They  continually  occur  in  various  degrees  of  inten- 
sity in  all  chromatic  spectra  produced  by  the  refraction  of 
light,  and  are  therefore  properly  called  colors. 

Purple  may  be  used  in  large  quantities  in  any  general 
arrangement,  especially  when  of  a  cool  tone.  In  the  richest 
patterns  of  carpets,  shawls,  and  such  like  pieces  of  manufac- 
ture, its  deepest  hues  are  invaluable.    Its  power  of  contrast 


PURPLE.  365 

to  all  the  warm  tones  of  yellow  gives  them  additional  warmth 
and  brilliancy ;  while  its  natural  clearness  prevents  it  from 
ever  appearing  dusky  or  heavy. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PURPLE. — The  finest  mad- 
der purples  may  be  obtained  by  a  mixture  of  Mercer's  "  Pa- 
tent Purple  Liquor,"  or  assistant  mordant,  and  which  has 
been  described  in  chapter  I.,  of  this  Part,  article  Mercer's 
Assistant  Mordant.  At  present  we  shall  merely  notice  a 
mode  of  obtaining  purple  liquor,  either  for  dyeing  or  writing, 
recently  patented  by  M.  De  Normandy,  of  Paris,  and  by 
which,  he  says,  he  obtains  a  splendid  purple  color  :  he  calls 
it  the  "King  of  Purples."  This  color  he  obtains  from  log- 
wood (Hoematoxylon  Campechiacum).  The  following  pro- 
portions must  be  observed  :— 

To  12  lbs.  of  logwood,  add  as  many  gallons  of  boiling  water;  pour  the  solution 
through  a  funnel,  with  a  strainer  made  of  coarse  flannel,  upon  1  lb.  of  hydrate  or 
acetate  of  deutoxide  of  copper,  finely  pulverized,  (at  the  bottom  of  the  funnel  a 
piece  of  sponge  is  placed ;)  then  add,  immediately,  14  lbs.  of  sulphate  of  alumine 
and  potash,  and  for  every  340  gallons  of  liquid,  add  80  lbs.  of  gum  arabic  or  gum 
Senegal. — Let  these  remain  for  three  or  four  days,  and  a  beautiful  purple  color 
will  be  produced. 

VIOLETS. — Chaptal  obtained  a  tolerably  agreeable  vio- 
let, by  dyeing  red  cottons  blue,  in  the  preparation  of  which 
he  diminished  the  quantities  of  oils  and  galls,  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  increased  that  of  alum,  as  well  as  the  brighten- 
ing process.  He  attempted  to  give  cotton  a  violet,  which 
would  yield  neither  in  durability  or  lustre  to  the  red  made  in 
his  dye-houses  ;  and  after  having  been  led  by  his  researches 
to  a  great  variety  of  processes,  which  afforded  with  more  or 
less  facility  the  color  sought  for,  he  preferred  the  following : — 

1.  The  mordant  for  200  lbs.  of  cotton,  is  prepared  with  50  lbs.  of  sulphate  of 
iron  (copperas),  and  12  lbs.  of  acetate  of  lead.  The  clear  liquid  is  separated  from 
the  deposit  that  is  formed ;  and  the  cotton  is  passed  through  it  with  care,  after 
receiving  three  oils,*  as  hot  as  possible. 

2.  On  taking  the  goods  out  of  the  bath,  they  are  wrung  and  handled  over :  and 
when  they  have  assumed,  on  cooling,  a  buff  shade,  they  are  to  be  well  washed, 
wrung,  and  dried,  with  accurate  stretching. 

3.  The  weight  of  the  goods,  of  madder,  is  employed  for  dyeing  them :  as  soon 


*  The  same  as  for  Turkey-red,  as  described  in  chapter  III.  of  this  Part. 


♦ 


366  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

as  the  bath  becomes  tepid  the  cotton  is  plunged  in,  with  gradual  increase  of  the 
heat,  but  without  boiling.    When  the  goods  have  become  bluish-black,  they  are 
taken  out  and  washed. 
4.  They  are  now  brightened  in  soap,  during  15  or  20  minutes.* 

BUFFS.f — Tinned  iron  plates,  (refuse  cuttings  of  a  tin- 
man's shop)  dissolved  in  aqua  regia,  three  parts  nitric  and  one 
muriatic  acid.  Then  raise  the  color  in  lime  water,  about  half 
a  pint  of  lime  to  the  gallon  of  liquor.  Repeat  the  process  for 
a  full  color.    The  color  is  permanent. 

It  is  utterly  impossible  to  give  directions  for  all  the  various 
shades  of  these  colors,  as  slight  variations  in  the  proportions 
of  the  ingredients  may  be  easily  made  to  suit  each  tint  of 
color. 


*  For  fast  colors,  says  Mr.  Cooper,  the  better  plan  is  to  give  a  ground  of  blue  in 
the  blue  vat,  and  then  dye  with  madder  and  brazil.  By  soaking  the  goods,  in  the 
first  instance,  in  the  acetate  of  alumina,  of  a  strength  according  to  the  shade  re- 
quired.— (See  Mordants,  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article  Alum.) 

t  See  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article  Iron. 


CHAPTER 


IX. 


OF  BLACK. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK  ON  COTTON. 

Preliminary  Observations — Beautiful  Permanent  Jet  Black  on  Cotton — The  OK 
Methods  superseded — Catechue  Brown — Browns  with  Quercitron — Varieties  ol 
this  Color,  and  the  Modes  of  producing  them — Amaranth,  Cinnamon,  Ac- 
General  Remarks  on  these  Dyes. 

Preliminary  observations. — Black  and  its  contrasting  hue, 
white,  are  the  two  most  dangerous  colors  in  the  whole  chro- 
matic series  ;  the  one  being  at  the  bottom  and  the  other  at  the 
top  of  the  scale,  they  each  require  particular  management. 
When  an  arrangement  of  rich  and  intense  colors  is  here  and 
there  interrupted  by  patches  or  shadings  of  black,  as  too  often 
happens  in  patterns  of  carpets  and  other  subjects  of  a  simi- 
lar nature,  the  effect  is  harsh  and  unpleasant.  It  therefore 
ought,  in  designs  of  this  nature,  to  be  accompanied  and  mel- 
lowed by  such  deep  hues  as  lie  next  it  in  the  natural  series. 
White  should  in  like  manner  be  introduced  by  a  gradation  of 
the  lightest  tints,  otherwise  the  effect  will  be  spotty  and 
broken. 

White  can  only  be  used  in  large  quantities  in  arrangements 
of  a  cool  and  sombre  character,  and  should  always  be  pure 
and  transparent.  For  want  of  this  quality  in  the  black  em- 
ployed in  the  generality  of  worsted  fabrics,  it  has  always  a 
sooty  and  heavy  effect.  It  should,  therefore,  be  employed  in 
such  manufactures  with  great  caution.  Perhaps  the  most 
general  error  in  the  coloring  of  the  carpets  manufactured  in 
this  country,  as  well  as  in  England,  Scotland,  and  Belgium, 
is  the  too  frequent  use  of  black  and  white.  The  deepest 
shades  should  never  be  darker  than  indigo,  marone,  or  brown ; 
and  the  highest  tints  would  be  much  improved  by  being 


368 


DYEING  AND 


CALICO 


PRINTING. 


mellowed  down  by  some  warm  color.  More  latitude  may  be 
taken  with  black  in  silk  manufactures,  as  it  can  be  produced 
on  that  material  in  the  greatest  clearness  and  depth. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK.— In  order  that 
the  reader  may  obtain  a  thorough  practical  knowledge  of 
the  best  modes  of  dyeing  this  (as  well  as  every  other)  color, 
he  must  study  attentively  the  uses  and  chemical  characters 
of  the  various  dye-stuffs,  Animal,  Vegetable,  and  Mineral,  as 
given  in  this  work.  We  will,  therefore,  commence  by  refer 
ring  him  to  the  article  on  Logwood,  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  and 
to  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article  Iron. 

Of  the  thousands  of  recipes  prescribed  in  books,  for  pro- 
curing a  permanent  black  on  cotton  goods,  not  one  has  ever 
perfectly  answered  the  purpose.  There  is  but  one  method 
known  of  procuring  a  durable  as  well  as  beautiful  black  on 
cotton,  and  for  the  discovery  of  which  we  are  indebted  to  Mr. 
Koechlin,  of  Alsace.    The  following  is  the  process  : — 

1.  The  goods  are  allowed  to  steep  in  a  decoction  of  sumac  for  twelve  hours; 
after  which  they  are  wrought  through  lime-water,  which  gives  them  a  beautiful 
blueish-green  color,  becoming  very  dark  with  a  short  time's  exposure  to  the  air. 
If  allowed  to  stand  for  half  an  hour,  the  green  color  passes  off,  and  the  goods  as- 
sume a  greenish-dun  shade. 

2.  When  the  goods  are- at  the  darkest  shade  of  green,  they  are  put  through  a 
solution  of  copperas :  after  working  some  time  in  this,  and  allowing  them  to  stand 
exposed  to  the  air,  they  become  a  black.  But  if  dried  from  this,  it  is  only  slate  or 
dark-gray. 

3.  The  goods  are  again  put  through  lime-water,  which  renders  them  brown,  and 
then  wrought  through  a  decoction  of  logwood  till  the  color  of  the  wood  has  nearly 
disappeared. 

4.  A  little  copperas  is  now  added,  which  throws  off  the  reddish  hues  of  the 
wood,  giving  them  a  blue  shade.    This  is  termed  raising  the  color. 

5.  The  goods  are  washed  from  this  in  cold  water,  and  dried  in  the  shade. 

6.  When  a  deep  blue -black  is  wanted,  the  goods  are  dyed  blue  previous  to  steep- 
ing in  the  sumac. 

This  method  of  dyeing  black,  on  cotton,  is  rapidly  super- 
seding the  old  processes  as  practiced  in  England,  Ireland, 
Scotland,  and  France. 

We  formerly  mentioned  (in  chapter  I.  of  this  Part)  tin  as 
a  mordant  for  logwood,  the  goods  being  put  through  the  solu- 
tion, and  afterwards  well  washed.  Was  this  salt  of  tin  re- 
maining soluble  when  the  goods  were  washed,  the  mordant 


BLACK. 


369 


would  be  dissolved  from  the  cloth  ;  but  the  chloride  of  tin  in 
the  cloth  is  decomposed  during  the  operation  of  washing,  and 
there  remains  fixed  in  the  fibres,  the  insoluble  compound  of 
tin,  constituting  a  mordant  which  combines  easily  with  the 
logwood.*  Probably  the  cloth  itself  acts  a  part  in  assisting 
this  decomposition,  which  would  account  for  its  being  dyed 
permanently  by  immersions  into  a  soluble  compound  of  tin 
and  logwood,  as  noticed  in  reference  to  plumb  tubs  in  the 
same  chapter,  but  the  various  compositions  of  tin  and  log- 
wood have  not  yet  been  studied  chemically.  There  are  a 
number  of  other  vegetables,  besides  galls  and  sumac,  which 
contain  tannint  in  great  abundance,  and  which  have  all 
been  described  in  Part  I.  chapter  III.,  and  chapter  II.  Part 
III.  The  various  combinations  of  tannin  with  the  metallic 
oxides,  especially  tin,  are  noticed  in  chapter  I.  of  this  Part. 

CATECHUE  BROWN. — To  dye  this  color,  proceed  as 
follows  : — 

The  catechue  is  boiled  in  water  till  dissolved.  Let  the  boiling  cease,  then  add  a 
little  nitrate  of  copper ;  say  that  a  cent  is  dissolved  in  two  gills  of  aquafortis,  this 
will  do  10  lbs  of  catechue.  The  whole  is  well  mixed,  and  the  cotton  immersed  and 
allowed  to  remain  in  it  till  the  solution  becomes  cold,  generally  over  night ;  it  is 
then  to  be  taken  out  and  well  wrung,  and  wrought  for  nearly  twenty  minutes  in  a 
solution  of  bichromate  of  potash  (chrome)  at  nearly  a  boiling  heat,  it  is  then  wash- 
ed and  finished  through  a  solution  of  soap,  sufficiently  strong  to  stand  a  lather 
after  the  goods  come  out. 

*  The  mordant  much  employed  (for  cotton  goods)  in  Germany  for  this  dye 
(black);  with  logwood,  galls,  sumac,  &c,  is  Iron-Alum,  so  called  on  account  of  its 
having  the  crystaline  form  of  alum,  though  it  contains  no  alumina.  It  is  prepared 
by  dissolving  78  pounds  of  red  oxide  of  iron  in  117  pounds  of  sulphuric  acid,  dilu- 
ting this  compound  with  water,  adding  to  the  mixture  87  pounds  of  sulphate  of 
potash,  evaporating  the  solution  to  the  crystalizing  point.  This  potash-sulphate 
of  iron  has  a  fine  amethyst  color  when  recently  prepared ;  and  though  it  gets 
coated  in  the  air  with  a  yellowish  crust,  it  is  none  the  worse  on  this  account.  As 
a  mordant,  a  solution  of  this  salt,  in  from  six  to  sixty  parts  of  water,  serves  to 
communicate  and  fix  a  great  variety  of  uniform  ground  colors,  from  light  gray  to 
brown,  blue,  or  jet  black,  with  quercitron,  galls,  logwood,  sumac,  &c.,  separate  or 
combined.  The  above  solution  may  be  usefully  modified  by  adding  to  every  10 
pounds  of  the  iron-alum,  dissolved  in  eight  gallons  (80  pounds)  of  warm  water,  10 
pounds  of  acetate  (sugar)  of  lead,  and  leaving  the  mixture,  after  careful  stirring,  to 
settle.  Sulphate  of  lead  falls,  and  the  oxide  of  iron  remains  combined  with  the 
acetic  acid  and  the  potash.  After  passing  through  the  above  mordant,  the  goods 
should  be  quickly  dried. —  Ure. 

1  See  Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid,  chapter  II.  of  this  Part. 

47 


370 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


This  produces  a  very  rich  permanent  brown,  and  is  al- 
ready superseding  the  use  of  madder  for  the  same  color, 
being  nearly  equally  permanent  and  more  easily  obtained. 
The  shade  is  varied  according"  to  the  proportion  of  the  ingre- 
dients used,  so  that  a  rich  vanterine  or  a  dark  chocolate  may 
be  obtained  with  equal  facility. 

BROWNS  WITH  QUERCITRON  BARK,  &c— The 
modes  of  dyeing  brown  with  quercitron  bark,  and  the  use  of 
yellow  spirits  (see  chapter  I.  of  this  Part,  article  Yellow 
Spirits),  is  not  very  suitable  for  cloth.  The  best  mode  is  the 
following : —  • 

1.  Impregnate  the  cloth  with  pyrolignite  of  alumina,  and  dye  it  yellow  in  the 
same  manner  as  given  for  dyeing  greens.* 

2.  A  bath  is  now  prepared  with  logwood  and  Brazil-wood,  about  one  part  of  the 
former  to  two  of  the  latter  ;  the  goods  are  then  wrought  in  this  mixture  for  ten 
minutes,  when  a  little  alum  is  added,  and  they  are  wrought  ten  minutes  longer ; 
they  are  then  washed  from  this  and  dried.  If  the  ingredients  be  well  proportioned, 
this  method  gives  beautiful  shades  of  brown. 

"  Brown  of  different  shades  is  imparted  to  cotton  and  linen, 
by  impregnating  them  with  a  mixed  mordant  of  acetates  of 
alumina  and  iron,  and  then  dyeing  them,  either  with  madder 
alone,  or  with  madder  and  fustic.  When  the  aluminous  mor- 
dant predominates,  the  madder  gives  an  amaranth  tint.t  For 
horse-chestnut  brown,  the  cotton  must  be  galled,  plunged  into 
a  black  bath,  then  into  a  bath  of  sulphate  of  copper,  next 
dyed  in  a  decoction  of  fustic,  wrung  out,  passed  through  a 
strong  madder  bath,  then  through  the  sulphate  of  copper  so- 
lution, and  finished  with  a  soap  boil. 

"  A  superior  brown  is  produced  by  like  means  upon  cotton 
goods,  which  have  undergone  the  oiling  process  of  the 
Turkey  red  dye.  Such  stuffs  must  be  galled,  mordanted 
with  alum,  sulphate  of  iron,  and  acetate  of  lead  (equal  to 
|  of  the  alum) ;  after  washing  and  drying,  dye  in  a  madder 

*  See  chapter  VII.  of  this  Part. 

t  Amaranth. — M.  Vitalis  gives  us  the  following  receipt  for  obtaining  this  color: 
— 1.  The  cotton  is  strongly  galled,  dried,  and  washed.  2.  It  is  passed  through 
black  dye,  till  it  has  taken  a  strong  gray  shade.  3.  It  receives  a  bath  of  lime- 
water.  4.  Mordant  of  tin.  5.  Dyeing  in  the  Brazil-wood  bath.  6.  The  two  last 
operations  are  repeated. 


BLACK. 


371 


bath,  and  cleared  with  a  soap  boil.  The  tint  of  brown 
varies  with  the  proportion  of  alum  and  sulphate  of  iron. 

"  We  perceive  from  these  examples,  in  how  many  ways 
the  browning  of  dyes  may  be  modified,  upon  what  principles 
they  are  founded,  and  how  we  have  it  in  our  power  to  turn 
the  shade  more  or  less  towards  red,  black,  yellow,  blue,  &c."* 

CINNAMON. — Different  shades  of  cinnamon  may  be  ob- 
tained, when  cottons  first  dyed  with  madder  get  an  olive  cast 
with  iron  liquor  in  a  fustic  bath. 

These  cinnamon  and  mordore  shades  are  also  produced  by 
dyeing  them  first  in  a  bath  of  weld  and  verdigris,  passing 
them  through  a  solution  of  sulphate  of  iron,  (copperas)  wring- 
ing and  drying ;  next  through  a  bath  containing  1  pound  of 
galls  for  every  10  pounds  of  goods,  again  drying  ;  next  alum- 
ing,  and  maddering.  They  must  be  brightened  by  a  boil  in 
soap  water. 

Cinnamon  color,  on  either  silk  or  cotton,  may  also  be  ob- 
tained in  the  following  manner  : — 

"  Run  the  goods  through  a  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper  (blue  vitriol) ;  then 
pass  through  lime-water,  which  will  give  a  handsome  sky-blue  of  considerable 
permanency.  Now  run  the  goods  through  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash.  This 
gives  them  a  beautiful  brown. 

*  I/re. 


PART  FOURTH. 

DYEING  PROCESSES  CONTINUED. 


CHAPTER  I. 
OF  RED. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  SCARLET  ON  WOOL. 

Observations  on  Colors,  Simple  and  Compound — Proper  names — Mordants  of  the 
different  Authors  for  Dyeing  Scarlet — Dyeing  Processes,  English,  French,  Ger- 
man, and  Italian — General  Remarks  on  these  Processes — Lac-Scarlet — Crim- 
son— Rose  Colors — Brazil-wood  Scarlet — Madder  Red,  &c. 

The  only  proper  names  amongst  colors  are  red,*  yellow, 
blue,  green,  purple,  citrine,  russet,  and  brown ;  with  white, 
gray,  and  black,  for  light,  shade,  and  darkness.  Red  has,  no 
doubt,  two  other  varieties  to  which  proper  names  have  been 
given — namely,  crimson  and  scarlet ;  the  first  being  the  ad- 
mixture of  red  with  a  small  proportion  of  blue,  and  the  sec- 
ond being  the  same  with  a  small  proportion  of  yellow,  as 
shall  be  pointed  out  in  the  sequel.  But  they  approach  in  ap- 
pearance so  near  the  primary  color,  that  their  names  are 
often  used  as  a  general  term  for  red.  The  term  crimson  is 
derived  from  the  Italian  crimosino,  and  that  of  scarlet  from 
the  French  escarlate. 

White  and  black  are  representatives  of  the  principles  of 
light  and  darkness ;  and  yellow,  red,  and  blue,  the  primary 


*  See  chapter  III.  Part  III.  article  Preliminary  Observations. 


RED.  373 

elements  of  color,  out  of  which,  by  commixture  and  union 
amongst  themselves,  every  conceivable  variety  of  color  and 
hue  arises. 

The  nature  and  qualities  of  these  elements  of  chromatic 
beauty  must  be  well  understood  before  a  correct  idea  can  be 
formed  of,  or  proper  names  given  to,  their  various  combina- 
tions. White  and  black  are  not  colors  themselves,  but  are, 
as  the  representatives  of  light  and  darkness,  simply  the  mod- 
ifiers of  colors,  in  reducing  them,  and  the  hues  arising  from 
them,  by  their  attenuating  and  neutralizing  effects,  to  tints 
and  shades  respectively. 

The  distinctive  characteristic  of  a  mixed  color,  must  there- 
fore depend  upon  the  mode  in  which  the  primaries  are  com- 
bined in  its  composition  ;  and,  as  these  elements  are  but  three 
in  number,  we  can  only  have  other  two  distinct  kinds ;  name- 
\y,  those  in  which  two  of  them  occur,  called  secondary  colors, 
and  those  in  which  the  whole  three  are  combined,  generally 
called  tertiary  colors.  These  last  are,  however,  more  properly 
called  hues,  because  they  are  colors  only  by  the  predomi- 
nance or  subordination  in  their  composition  of  one  or  other 
of  the  three  primaries,  above  or  below  its  natural  power  of 
neutralization,  as  shall  afterwards  be  shown. 

So  much  for  the  nature  of  the  primary  elements  of  color. 
Their  powers  shall  now  be  considered. 

That  these  elements  can  be  produced  in  perfect  purity, 
seems  a  physical  impossibility;  even  in  the  solar  spectrum 
they  cannot  be  perfectly  separated  by  any  refracting  power 
yet  discovered,  but  are  all  to  a  certain  extent  mixed  with 
those  that  lie  next  them  in  series.  Notwithstanding  this  dif- 
ficulty, their  powers  have  been  ascertained  by  various  prac- 
tical experiments,  especially  those  performed  by  Field,  to  be, 
in  regard  to  their  capability  of  reflecting  light  in  ratios,  some- 
what similar  to  those  of  the  tonic,  mediant,  and  dominant 
of  the  musical  scale,  or  more  properly  to  the  harmonic  ratios. 
It  will  therefore  be  found,  that  taking  the  purest  powdered 
pigments  that  art  can  produce,  and  mixing  them  in  the  pro- 
portions— one  yellow,  two  red,  and  three  blue,  of  equal  in- 


374 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tensity,  a  cool  gray,  such  as  produced  by  the  mixture  of 
white  and  black,  will  be  the  result. 

It  has  long  been  maintained,  that  these  three  colors  will 
produce  white  light.  This,  however,  cannot  be  the  case  ;  for 
colors  can  only  be  excited,  as  in  the  solar  spectrum,  by  the 
joint  influence  of  light  and  darkness,  and  are  an  intermediate 
phenomenon  between  these  two  principles,  the  natural  con- 
currence of  which,  in  the  absence  of  a  refracting  power,  is,  as 
in  the  mixture  of  pigments,  a  cool  gray. 

Before  proceeding  to  describe  the  dyeing  operations,  we 
will  give  a  list  of  mordants,  commonly  known  as  composition 
or  solution  of  tin.  The  following  are  the  methods  most  to 
be  depended  upon  by  the  practical  dyer  for  producing  scarlet 
on  woolen  goods  : — 

MORDANT  A,  by  Berthollet. — Dissolve  in  nitric  acid  of 
30°  B.  one-eighth  of  its  weight  of  sal  ammoniac,  then  add, 
by  degrees,  one-eighth  of  its  weight  of  tin,  and  dilute  the  so- 
lution, with  one-fourth  of  its  weight  of  water. 

MORDANT  B,  by  Poerner. — Mix  one  pound  of  nitric  acid 
with  one  pound  of  water,  and  dissolve  it  in  an  ounce  and  a 
half  of  sal  ammoniac.  Stir  well,  and  add,  very  slowly,  two 
ounces  of  feathered  tin.* 

MORDANT  C. — Pour  into  a  glass  globe  with  a  long  neck, 
three  parts  of  pure  nitric  acid  at  30°  B. ;  and  one  part  of 
muriatic  acid  at  17° ;  shake  the  globe  gently,  avoiding  the 
corrosive  vapors,  and  put  a  loose  stopper  in  its  mouth. 
Throw  into  this  nitro-muriatic  acid  one-eighth  of  its  weight 
of  pure  tin,  in  small  particles  at  a  time.  When  the  solution 
is  complete,  and  settled,  decant  it  into  bottles,  and  close  them 
with  ground  stoppers.    It  should  not  be  diluted  before  used. 

MORDANT  D,  by  Dambourney. — In  two  drachms  Fr. 
(144  grs.)  of  pure  muriatic  acid,  dissolve  18  grains  of  Malacca 
tin. 

MORDANT  E,  by  Hellot.— Take  8  ounces  of  nitric  acid, 
diluted  with  as  much  water ;  dissolved  in  half  an  ounce  of 


*  For  the  best  method  of  feathering  the  tin,  see  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article,  Tin. 


SCARLET. 


375 


sal  ammoniac,  and  2  drachms  of  nitre.  In  this  dissolve  one 
ounce  of  tin. 

MORDANT  F,  by  Scheffer.— Dissolve  one  part  of  tin  in 
four  of  a  nitro-muriatic  acid,  prepared  with  nitric  acid  diluted 
with  its  own  weight  of  water,  and  one  thirty-secondth  of  sal 
ammoniac. 

MORDANT  G,  by  Dambourney. — Take  1  drachm  (72 
grs.)  of  muriatic  acid  at  17°,  one  of  nitric  acid  at  30°,  and  18 
grains  of  water,  in  which  dissolve  18  grains  of  fine  Malacca 
tin. 

These  solutions,  so  different  in  their  preparation,  must  of 
course  have  different  properties  ;*  but  one  essential  object  is 
not  obtained,  namely,  an  uniform  preparation  of  the  composi- 
tion ;  uniform  as  to  the  kind  of  acid,  the  strength  of  the 
acid,  and  the  proportion  of  tin  and  of  other  ingredients  if  any 
such  are  used.  For  this  purpose  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to 
have  pure  nitric  acid,  and  of  a  given  strength.  It  should  be 
also  remarked  that  as  the  solution  of  tin  is  apt  to  become 
gelatinous,  from  the  gradual  oxidization  of  the  tin,  partly  by 
nitric  acid,  and  partly  by  imbibing  oxygen  from  the  atmos- 
phere ;  it  is  best  not  to  make  too  much  of  it  at  a  time.  The 
gelatinous  effect,  says  Cooper,  may  be  prevented  by  keeping 
the  tin  solution  in  a  cool  dark  place,  in  a  greenish  glass  bot- 
tle, well  stopped  with  a  glass  stopper,  with  a  little  butter 
around  the  juncture  to  exclude  the  air. 

Long  experience,  says  Berthollet,  has  shown,  that  if  the 
solution  be  made  so  hastily  and  violently  that  the  nitric  acid 
is  much  decomposed,  and  many  red  vapors  produced,  the 
color  is  never  so  good  on  the  cloth,  as  when  the  composition 
is  made  slowly,  patiently,  in  a  cool  place,  the  tin  put  in  by  a 
grain  or  two  at  a  time,  and  the  composition  used  soon  after 
it  is  made. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  SCARLET.!— Scarlet  is  the 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article,  Tin. 

t  The  difference  in  the  affinity  of  the  coloring  particles  for  wool,  silk,  and  cot- 
ton, is  sometimes  so  great,  that  they  refuse  to  combine  with  one  of  these  sub- 
stances, whilst  they  combine  very  well  with  another ;  thus,  cotton  takes  no  color 
in  the  bath  that  dyes  wool  scarlet.    Dufay  got  a  piece  of  stuff  made,  the  warp  of 


376 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


most  beautiful  and  brilliant  color  among  dyes.  Taste  fluctu- 
ates with  regard  to  the  shade  in  demand.  Sometimes  scarlet 
is  sought  for  of  a  perfect  and  deeper  red  ;  more  frequently  in- 
clining more  or  less  to  the  color  of  flame. 

We  cannot  expect  to  obtain  the  desired  shade  from  the 
precise  doses  prescribed  in  the  processes,  from  variations  in 
the  quantity  of  the  coloring  particles  contained  in  the  differ- 
ent kinds  of  fine  cochineal,  and  particularly  from  the  solu- 
tions of  tin  that  are  used  differing  considerably  from  each 
other  ;  but  the  just  proportions  of  the  ingredients  to  be  em- 
ployed may  be  readily  determined  by  trials  in  the  small  way, 
so  as  to  obtain  the  shade  called  for  ;  and  if  the  pieces  which 
are  dyed  be  above  or  below  this  shade,  it  is  not  difficult  to 
find  the  suitable  proportions. — (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  arti- 
cle, Tin.) 

1.  For  100  pounds  of  cloth,  put  into  the  water,  when  it  is 
a  little  more  than  lukewarm,  6  pounds  cream  of  tartar,  and 
stir  well.  When  the  water  becomes  too  hot  for  the  hand, 
throw  into  it,  with  agitation,  one  pound  of  cochineal,  in  fine 
powder.  An  instant  afterwards,  pour  in  5  pounds  of  the 
mordant  A,  stir  the  whole  thoroughly.  As  soon  as  the  bath 
begins  to  boil,  introduce  the  cloth,  and  wince  briskly  for  two 
or  three  rotations,  and  then  more  slowly.  At  the  end  of  a 
two-hours'  boil,  the  cloth  must  be  taken  out,  and  allowed  to 
become  perfectly  cool,  after  which  it  should  be  well  washed 
at  the  river,  or  winced  in  a  current  of  pure  water. 

2.  Now  fill  with  water,  and  when  it  is  at  the  boiling  point, 
5i  pounds  of  cochineal  are  thrown  in,  and  mixed  with  care  ; 
when  the  crust,  which  forms  upon  the  surface,  opens  of  itself 
in  several  places,  14  pounds  of  the  mordant  A,  must  be  added. 
Should  the  liquor  be  likely  to  boil  over  the  edges  of  the  bath, 
it  must  be  refreshed  with  a  little  cold  water.    When  the  bath 


which  was  wool,  and  the  weft  cotton ;  he  passed  this  stuff  through  the  fulling- 
mill,  to  ensure  the  same  preparation  to  the  wool  and  cotton ;  but  the  wool  took  the 
scarlet  dye,  and  the  cotton  remained  almost  white.  It  is  this  difference  of  affinity 
which  makes  it  necessary  to  vary  the  preparations  and  the  processes,  according  to 
the  nature  of  the  substance  which  we  wish  to  dye  of  a  particular  color. — (See 
chapter  I.  Part  III.) 


SCARLET. 


377 


has  become  uniform,  the  cloth  is  to  be  put  in,  taking  care  to 
wince  it  briskly  for  two  or  three  turns  ;  then  to  boil  it  for  an 
hour,  thrusting  it  under  the  liquor  with  a  rod  whenever  it 
rises  to  the  surface.  It  is  lastly  taken  out,  aired,  washed  at 
the  river,  and  dried. 

BERTHOLLET'S  PROCESS  (with  emendations).— We 
shall  now  give  Berthollet's  method  of  dyeing  scarlet.  It  is  in 
vain  to  expect  any  required  shade  from  the  proportions  indi- 
cated in  the  common  recipes ;  for  the  cochineal  varies  in 
quality,  and  the  composition  is  liable  to  great  variety  in 
strength,  but  by  means  of  trials  in  the  small  way,  the  pro- 
portions necessary  to  any  required  color  may  be  easily  as- 
certained.* The  first  process  is  called  the  preparation,  and 
is  as  follows  : — 

1.  For  one  hundred  and  twelve  pounds  of  woolen  cloth, 
throw  in  six  pounds  and  three  quarters  cream  of  tartar  •  stir 
well ;  then  add  half  a  pound  of  cochineal,  and  stir  ;  then  add 
five  pounds  and  a  half  of  a  clear  solution  of  tin  (Mordant  A), 
and  again  stir  the  liquor.  When  the  whole  is  about  to  boil, 
enter  the  cloth,  which  must  be  turned  on  the  wince  with 
great  rapidity  three  or  four  times,  and  afterwards  more  slow- 
ly. After  thus  turning  it  in  the  boiling  liquor  for  two  hours, 
heave  out,  air,  and  wash  in  the  river. 

2.  Now  empty  the  bath  and  fill  with  water.  Heat  the 
water,  and  when  near  the  boiling  point,  throw  in  five  pounds 
and  a  half  of  cochineal ;  it  must  be  well  stirred  ;  when  the 
stirring  is  left  off  and  a  crust  appears  on  top  of  the  liquor, 
which  breaks  spontaneously  in  several  places,  then  pour  in 
fifteen  pounds  and  a  quarter  of  the  composition  (Mordant 
A).  If  the  liquor  should  then  boil  up  to  the  edge  of  the  caul 
dron,  cool  down  with  a  little  water. 

3.  The  composition  being  well  mixed,  the  cloth  is  turned 
into  the  bath,  taking  care  to  wince  it  rapidly  for  three  or 


*  To  employ  cochineal  in  dyeing,  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that  it  should  be 
well  ground  and  then  sifted  through  a  fine  sieve ;  all  the  particles  that  do  not 
pass  the  sieve,  are  found  at  the  close  of  the  operation  undissolved,  and  without 
having  materially  parted  with  their  coloring  matter. 

48 


378 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


four  turns  ;  then  more  gently,  but  still  not  slowly,  in  the 
liquor  during  an  hour,  pushing  it  under  the  surface  with  a 
stick  as  often  as  it  rises  up  ;  heave  out,  air,  cool,  wash,  and 
dry. 

Generally  a  bright  flame  color  is  in  demand ;  in  which 
case  quercitron  bark  is  added  to  the  preparation.*  When 
this  is  the  case,  it  can  be  discovered  by  cutting  the  cloth,  the 
inside  of  which  will  show  marks  of  the  yellow  dye,  for  in 
the  common  process  the  cochineal  does  not  penetrate  quite 
through  the  cloth. 

SCHEFFER'S  PROCESS  {with  emendations).— This 
author  prescribes  for  the  preparation  bath,  one  part  by  weight 
of  the  composition  to  ten  parts  of  cloth,  with  a  tenth  also  of 
starch,  and  a  tenth  of  tartar.  He  remarks  that  starch  ren- 
ders the  color  more  uniform.  He  recommends  to  throw  into 
the  water  when  it  boils,  a  quantity  of  cochineal  equal  to  y^th 
of  the  weight  of  the  cloth,  to  stir  it  well,  to  boil  the  cloth 
in  it  for  an  hour,  and  then  cool  and  rinse  it.  /Then  to  boil  it 
for  half  an  hour  in  the  finishing  bath,  with  J^d  of  starch, 
~th  of  solution  of  tin,  J^d  of  tartar,  and  ^th  of  cochi- 
neal. The  proportion  of  composition  used  by  SchefTer,  is 
much  less  than  that  used  by  Hellot,  but  his  composition  con- 
tains more  tin  than  Hellot's. 

POERNER'S  PROCESS  {with  emendations).— Poerner 
describes  three  principal  processes,  according  as  the  shades 
are  to  be  more  or  less  deep,  or  more  or  less  orange.  This 
consists  in  varying  the  quantities  of  composition  and  of  tin, 
and  of  adding  or  omitting  the  tartar  which  contributes  to  the 
yellow  or  flame-colored  hue  of  the  scarlet.  If  the  proportion 
of  composition  be  too  small,  all  the  cochineal  will  not  be 
taken  up,  and  the  water  in  the  bath  will  be  colored :  if  too 
large,  it  reacts  on  the  color  of  the  cochineal,  dissolves  it,  and 
renders  it  liable  to  be  washed  out ;  hence  the  color  comes 
out  weak  and  faded.    But  if  the  cochineal  be  in  proportion 

*  Several  hundreds  of  experiments,  says  Dr.  Bancroft,  vol.  I.,  p.  361,  warrant 
my  assertion  that  at  least  one-fourth  of  the  cochineal  generally  employed  in  dye- 
ing scarlet,  may  be  saved  by  obtaining  so  much  yellow  as  is  necessary  to  compose 
this  color,  from  quercitron  bark. 


SCARLET. 


379 


to  the  tin,  the  color  will  be  full  and  rich  when  they  are  used 
plentifully.  The  tartar  gives  the  yellow  tinge  which  with 
the  crimson  of  the  cochineal  produces  the  flame  color. 

If  the  yellow  tint  should  predominate  too  much,  it  is  cor- 
rected by  running  the  cloth,  when  dyed,  through  hot  water ; 
this  effect  is  owing  to  some  small  proportion  of  calcerous  salts 
contained  in  the  water,*  which  if  perfectly  pure  would  not 
alter  the  color  at  all. 

Poerner's  three  processes  above  alluded  to  will  now  be 
described. 

PROCESS  No.  1.  1.  Preparation  bath.— For  eveiy 
pound  of  cloth  or  wool,  take  14  drachms  of  cream  of  tartar. 
When  the  bath  is  boiling,  and  the  tartar  all  dissolved,  pour  in 
successively  14  drachms  of  solution  of  tin  (Mordant  B),  and 
boil  for  a  few  minutes.  Now  introduce  the  cloth,  and  boil  it 
for  2  hours  ;  then  heave  out,  let  drain,  and  cool. 

2.  Finishing  bath. — For  every  pound  of  woolen  goods,  take 
2  drachms  cream  of  tartar.  When  the  bath  begins  to  boil, 
add  1  ounce  of  cochineal ;  stir  well,  and  let  boil  for  a  few 
minutes.  Now  pour  in,  by  successive  portions,  1  ounce  of 
solution  of  tin  (Mordant  B\  stirring  continually,  and  then 
dye  as  quickly  as  possible.  The  color  will  be  a  beautiful 
scarlet. 

PROCESS  No.  2.  1.  Preparation  bath.— -This  bath  is 
precisely  the  same  as  Process  No.  1.,  and  is  always  estimated 
for  1  pound  of  goods. 

2.  Finishing  bath. — Take  1  ounce  of  cochineal,  and  2 
ounces  of  solution  of  tin  without  tartar. 

PROCESS  No.  3.  1.  Preparation  bath.— This  bath  is 
in  all  respects  the  same  as  the  two  already  described  above. 

2.  Finishing  bath. — For  a  pound  of  cloth,  take  2  drachms 
cream  of  tartar,  one  ounce  of  cochineal,  one  ounce  of  solution 
of  tin,  and  two  ounces  of  sea  salt;  finish  as  in  Process  No.  1. 
The  salt  helps  the  dye  to  penetrate  into  the  cloth. 

*  See  chapter  II.  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of  Water.  If  the  water  is  so  pure 
as  not  to  produce  this  effect  of  slightly  crimsoning  the  color  when  too  yellow,  put 
about  half  an  ounce  or  an  ounce,  at  the  most,  of  pearlash  into  a  hundred  gallons 
of  water,  which  will  operate  as  a  corrective. —  Cooper. 


380 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Tables  showing  the  composition  of  the  preparation  and  finishing  baths,  by  Ber- 
thollet, Hellot,  Scheffer,  and  Poerner,  for  100  pounds  of  cloth  or  wool. 

Preparation  bath. 


Names  of  the  Authors. 

Starch. 

Cream  of  Tar- 
tar. 

Cochineal. 

Solution  of 
Tin. 

Common  Salt. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb. 

oz. 

Ib. 

dr. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb.  oz. 

Berthollet  - 

0 

0 

6 

0 

8 

0 

5 

0 

0  0 

Hellot 

0 

0 

12 

8 

18 

6 

12 

8 

0  0 

Scheffer 

9 

6 

9 

6 

12 

4 

9 

6 

0  0 

Poerner 

0 

0 

10 

15 

0 

0 

10 

15 

0  0 

Finishing  bath. 


Names  of  the  Authors. 

Starch. 

Cream  of  Tar- 
tar. 

Cochineal. 

Solution  of 
Tin. 

Common  Salt. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb. 

oz. 

lb.  oz. 

Berthollet  - 

0 

0 

0 

0 

5 

8 

14 

0 

0  0 

Hellot 

3 

2 

0 

0 

7 

4 

12 

8 

0  0 

Scheffer 

3 

2 

3 

2 

5 

7£ 

4 

11 

0  0 

0 

0 

1 

8 

6 

4 

6 

4 

0  0 

Poerner     -  j 

0 

0 

0 

0 

6 

4 

12 

8 

0  0 

0 

0 

1 

8 

6 

4 

6 

4 

12  8 

M.  Lenormand  states  that  he  has  made  experiments  of 
verification  upon  all  the  formulae  of  the  preceding  tables,  and 
declares  his  conviction  that  the  finest  tint  may  be  obtained 
by  the  preparation  of  Scheffer,  and  finishing  (Process  No. 
3,)  of  Poerner. 

LAC-SCARLET. — When  the  lac-dye  was  first  introduced, 
sulphuric  acid  was  the  solvent  applied  to  the  pulverized 
cakes,  but  as  muriatic  acid  has  been  found  to  answer  much 
better,  it  has  entirely  supplanted  it.  A  good  solvent  for  this 
dye-stuff  may  be  prepared  as  follows,  and  which  we  shall  call 
No.  1 :— 

No.  1. — Dissolve  three  pounds  of  tin  in  60  pounds  of  muriatic  acid,  of  specific 
gravity  119. 

The  proper  mordant  or  composition  for  the  cloth  is  made 
in  the  following  manner,  and  which  we  shall  call  No.  2 : — 

No.  2— Mix  27  pounds  of  muriatic  acid  of  sp.  grav.  1-17,  with  l\  pounds  of 
nitric  acid  of  1-19  ;  put  this  mixture  in  a  salt-glazed  stone-bottle,  and  add  to  it,  in 
small  bits  at  a  time,  tin,  till  4  pounds  are  dissolved. 

This  solution  may  be  used  within  twelve  hours  after  it  is 
made,  provided  it  has  become  cold  and  clear.  For  dyeing, 
three  quarters  of  a  pint  of  the  solvent  No.  1  is  to  be  poured 


SCARLET. 


381 


upon  each  pound  of  the  pulverized  lac-dye,  and  allowed  tc 
digest  upon  it  for  six  hours.  The  cloth,  before  being  sub- 
jected to  the  dye-bath,  must  be  scoured  with  fuller's  earth. 
To  dye  100  pounds  of  cloth,  proceed  in  the  following  order  : — 

1.  Fill  a  tin  boiler,  of  300  gallons  capacity,  with  water,  and  when  at  a  tempera- 
ture of  150°  F.,  throw  in  a  handful  of  bran,  and  half  a  pint  of  the  solution  of  tin 
(No.  2).  The  froth  which  rises  to  the  top  as  it  approaches  ebullition,  must  be 
skimmed  off ;  and  when  the  boiling  commences  throw  in  10£  pounds  of  lac-dye, 
previously  mixed  with  7  pints  of  the  solvent  No.  1,  and  3  J  pounds  of  the  solution 
of  tin  No.  2.  An  instant  afterwards  throw  in  10£  pounds  of  tartar,  and  4  pounds 
of  ground  sumac,  both  tied  up  in  a  linen  bag.  The  sumac  and  tartar  should  re- 
main in  the  boiling  liquor  for  five  minutes. 

2.  Draw  the  fire  and  add  20  gallons  of  cold  water  and  10£  pints  of  the  solution 
of  tin  (No.  2) ;  then  enter  the  cloth  and  work  briskly  for  ten  minutes.  Now  re- 
kindle the  fire,  and  wince,  slowly,  bringing  the  liquor  to  a  boil  as  quickly  as  pos- 
sible :  keeping  it  at  that  point  for  an  hour.   Wash  well,  and  dry. 

The  above  proportions  of  the  ingredients  produce  a  brilliant 
scarlet  tint,  with  a  slightly  purple  cast.  If  a  more  orange 
hue  be  wanted,  white  Florence  argal  may  be  used,  instead  of 
tartar,  and  more  sumac.  Lac-dye  may  be  substituted  for 
cochineal  in  the  orange-scarlets  ;  but  for  delicate  pink  shades, 
it  does  not  answer  so  well,  as  the  lustre  is  apt  to  be  impaired 
by  the  large  quantity  of  acid  necessary  to  dissolve  the  color- 
ing matter  of  the  lac. 

CRIMSON. — The  color  produced  by  cochineal  with  alum* 
and  tartar,  is  crimson.  The  wool  must  first  be  boiled  in  from 
two  to  four  ounces  of  alum  per  pound  of  wool,  according  to 


*  Alum  is  the  great  mordant  employed  in  wool  dyeing.  It  is  frequently  dissolv- 
ed in  water,  holding  tartar  equal  to  one  fourth  the  weight  of  the  alum  in  solution ; 
by  which  addition  its  tendency  to  crystalize  is  diminished,  and  the  resulting  color 
is  brightened.  The  alum  and  tartar  combine  with  the  goods  without  suffering  any 
change,  and  are  decomposed  only  by  the  action  of  the  coloring  matters  in  the  dye 
bath.  The  alum  operates  solely  in  virtue  of  its  sulphuric  acid  and  earthy  basis ; 
the  sulphate  of  potash  present  in  that  salt  being  rather  injurious.  Hence,  if  a  sul- 
phate of  alumina  free  from  iron  could  be  readily  obtained,  it  would  prove  a  prefer- 
able mordant  to  alum.  It  is  also  probable,  for  the  reasons  above  assigned,  that 
soda  alum,  a  salt  much  less  apt  to  crystalize  than  potash  or  ammonia  alum,  would 
suit  the  dyer  very  well.  In  order  to  counteract  the  tendency  of  common  alum  to 
crystalize,  and  to  promote  its  tendency  to  pass  into  a  basic  salt,  one  eighth  part  of 
its  weight  of  potash  is  added  to  its  solution,  or  the  equivalent  in  chalk  or  soda. — 
TJre.     See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Alum.) 


382 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  fulness  of  color  required,  and  half  the  quantity  of  tartar, 
then  rinse  the  wool.  Make  ready  for  one  hundred  pounds  of 
wool,  a  boiler  that  will  hold  fifty  buckets  of  water ;  when  the 
water  boils,  put  in  an  ounce  of  sifted  cochineal  to  the  pound 
of  wool,  or  more  if  the  color  be  expected  very  deep.  Let  the 
cochineal  boil  ten  minutes,  stir,  and  enter  the  wool,  which 
must  be  worked  very  quickly  in  the  liquor  for  one  hour  and  a 
half;  and  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  after  all  the  cochineal 
seems  exhausted.  Then  take  out,  wash  and  dry. — (See 
chapter  III.,  Part  V.,  article  Cri?nson.) 

ROSE  COLORS. — Rose  colors  are  dyed  in  the  same  way 
as  crimson,  except  that  only  one  half  or  one  quarter  of  the 
cochineal  is  used,  and  from  one  ounce  to  half  an  ounce 
per  pound  of  wool,  of  the  tin  composition.  Some  dyers  dye 
their  rose  colors  thus :  they  take  of  alum  two  ounces,  cream 
of  tartar  one  ounce,  solution  of  tin  one  ounce,  sifted  cochineal 
a  quarter  of  an  ounce,  to  each  pound  of  wool :  boil  the  cochi- 
neal for  a  quarter  of  an  hour ;  dissolve  in  a  separate  vessel 
the  alum  and  tartar,  to  which  when  dissolved  add  the  compo- 
sition, stir  this  liquor  well,  and  then  add  it  to  the  cochineal 
liquor,  and  enter  the  goods,  which  must  be  worked  in  the 
mixture  for  an  hour  and  a  half.  No  rose  color  will  require 
half  an  ounce  of  cochineal ;  one-third  of  an  ounce,  if  good, 
is  the  fullest  proportion. 

BRAZIL-WOOD  SCARLET.— According  to  Dingier  and 
Kurrer,  bright  and  fast  scarlet  reds  may  be  obtained  upon 
wool,  by  preparing  a  decoction  of  50  pounds  of  Brazil-wood, 
in  three  successive  boils,  and  setting  the  decoction  aside  for  3 
or  4  weeks  in  a  cool  place ;  100  pounds  of  the  wool  are  then 
alumed  in  a  bath  of  22  pounds  of  alum  and  11  pounds  of  tar- 
tar, and  afterwards  rinsed  in  cold  water.  In  the  meanwhile, 
a  copper  containing  30  pailsful  is  filled  two-thirds,  and  heated 
to  a  temperature  of  150°  or  160°  F.  Three  pailsful  of  the 
decoction  are  now  poured  in,  and  heated  to  the  same  point 
again,  and  30  pounds  of  wool  introduced,  which  does  not  take 
a  scarlet,  but  rather  a  crimson  tint.  This  being  removed,  2 
pailsful  of  the  decoction  are  put  in,  and  30  pounds  of  wool, 
which  becomes  scarlet,  but  not  so  fine  as  at  the  third  dip.  If 


SCARLET. 


383 


the  dyer  strengthens  the  color  a  little  at  the  first  dip,  a  little 
more  at  the  second,  and  adds  at  the  third  and  fourth  the 
quantity  of  decoction  merely  necessary,  he  will  obtain  a  uni- 
form scarlet  tint.  With  50  pounds  of  Pernambuco,  1000 
pounds  of  wool  may  be  dyed  scarlet  in  this  way,  and  with 
the  deposits  another  100  may  be  dyed  of  a  tile  color.  Kar- 
kutsch  says  the  dye  may  be  improved  by  adding  some  ox-gall 
to  the  bath. 

MADDER  RED. — Wool  would  take  with  madder  only  a 
weak  and  perishable  dye,  were  not  the  coloring  particles  fixed 
by  a  base,  which  combines  them  more  intimately  with  the 
stuff,  and  which  screens  them  in  part  from  the  destructive 
action  of  the  air.  For  the  accomplishment  of  this  object,  the 
stuff  is,  first  of  all,  boiled  with  alum  and  tartar,  for  two  or 
three  hours ;  after  which  it  is  drained,  slightly  wrung,  then 
enclosed  in  a  bag,  which  is  left  in  a  cool  place,  and  let  alone 
for  some  days.  Alumed  wool  takes,  in  the  madder  bath,  a 
red  color,  which  is  not  so  bright,  as  a  matter  of  course,  as 
cochineal  red,  but  it  is  a  more  permanent  color ;  and  being 
cheaper,  is  much  used  for  household  purposes.  A  mordant  of 
alum  and  tartar  is  employed,  at  the  rate  of  from  eight  to  six- 
teen ounces  for  the  pound  of  cloth.  The  bath  is  heated  to  a 
hand  heat,  and  the  goods  are  then  dyed  by  the  wince  or  reel. 
Vitalis  prescribes  as  a  mordant  for  this  color,  one-fourth  of 
alum,  and  one-sixteenth  of  tartar ;  and  for  dyeing,  one- third 
of  madder,  with  the  addition  of  a  twenty -fourth  of  solution 
of  tin  diluted  with  its  weight  of  water.  He  raises  the  tem- 
perature in  the  space  of  an  hour  to  200°,  and  afterwards  boils 
for  3  or  4  minutes  ;  a  circumstance  which  it  is  believed,  con- 
tributes to  the  fixation  of  the  color.  The  bath,  after  dyeing, 
appears  much  loaded  with  yellow  matter,  because  this  has 
less  affinity  for  the  alum  than  the  red.*  We  have,  in  chap- 
ter III,  Part  I.,  article  Madder,  treated  extensively,  and  we 
trust  to  some  purpose,  of  this  subject,  and  to  which  the  reader 
is  referred .f 

*  Sometimes  a  little  archil  is  added  to  the  madder,  to  give  the  dye  a  pink  tinge 
but  this  is  fugitive. 

t  See  chapter  III.,  Part  III.,  article  Preliminary  Observations. 


CHAPTER  II. 


OF  YELLOW. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  YELLOW  ON  WOOL. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Yellow  with  Weld,  Fustic,  and  Quercitron — Buff  Yellow — 
Hendricks's  Patent  Process. 

WITH  WELD. — The  method  of  dyeing  yellow  with 
weld,  for  a  hundred  pounds  of  cloth  is  as  follows  : — 

100  lbs.  of  cloth. — 1.  Fill  a  boiler  with  weld,  for  a  hundred 
pounds  of  cloth  will  not  take  less  than  an  equal  weight  of 
weld,  and  for  very  deep  yellows  four  times  as  much  will  be 
required.*  Before  the  weld  liquor  boils,  dye  the  cloths  in- 
tended for  light  and  bright  yellows.  It  is  best  to  wash  them 
first  at  the  river,  to  detach  the  grosser  particles  of  alum  that 
merely  stick  to  the  cloth.  It  is  also  a  good  plan  to  empty  into 
another  boiler  as  much  of  the  dye-liquor  as  is  necessary  to 
dye  the  light  yellows.  When  this  is  done  the  liquor,  for  the 
light  yellows,  need  not  boil  over  a  few  minutes  before  enter- 
ing the  goods  to  be  dyed ;  first,  however,  throwing  in  some 
cold  water  to  bring  the  liquor  to  a  scald,  just  before  entering 
the  goods. 

2.  When  the  weld  is  taken  out  of  the  first  boiler,  boil  it 
again  in  another.  When  exhausted,  take  out  and  use  this 
second  boiling,  either  to  dye  light  shades  on  fresh  goods,  or  to 
strengthen  the  first  liquor.t  It  should  be  remarked,  however, 
that  light  shades  obtained  by  this  means  have  not  so  much 


*  Hellot  recommends  even  as  much  as  six  pounds  of  weld,  but  this  is  two 
pounds  too  much.  The  quantity  of  weld,  however,  should  be  proportioned  to  the 
depth  of  shade. 

t  Some  dyers  add  to  the  weld  a  little  quicklime  and  ashes,  which  favor  the  ex- 
traction of  the  coloring  matter,  alid  heighten  its  color,  but  this  renders  it  liable 
to  change  by  the  action  of  acids. 


YELLOW. 


385 


vivacity  as  when  fresh  baths  are  used,  proportioning  the 
quantity  of  weld  to  the  shade  desired.  If  the  cloth  is  wanted 
of  a  golden  yellow  color,  on  its  leaving  the  weld  bath,  it 
should  be  turned  through  a  slight  bath  of  madder. 

WITH  FUSTIC. — The  fustic  should  be  ground  or  rasped, 
anil  enclosed  in  a  bag,  that  it  may  not  mix  up  in  the  cloth. 
To  dye  the  color  proceed  as  follows  : — 

1.  In  a  boiler  of  sufficient  capacity  to  hold  twenty-five  buck- 
ets of  water,  put  fifty  pounds  of  fustic,  which  should  be  boiled 
from  two  to  three  hours. 

2.  Empty  the  liquor  into  a  wooden  pipe  or  tun ;  boil  the 
fustic  a  second  time,  and  empty  this  also  into  the  tun.  The 
liquor  should  never  be  allowed  to  remain  with  the  wood  in 
the  boiler,  not  even  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  because  the 
wood  would,  in  a  great  measure,  re-absorb  the  color.  The 
liquor,  therefore,  should  be  laded  off  while  boiling,  and  strain- 
ed through  a  wicker  basket  with  a  cloth.  For  like  reason, 
care  should  be  taken  that  no  wood  or  chips  be  thrown  into 
the  tun  which  contains  the  liquor.* 

WITH  QUERCITRON. — Dr.  Bancroft,  who  has  had 
great  experience  in  dyeing  with  quercitron  bark,  prescribes 
three  or  four  ounces  of  alum,  without  tartar,  as  the  mordant 
for  a  pound  of  woolen  goods.  Boil  the  cloth  in  it  a  couple  of 
hours ;  take  out,  drain,  but  do  not  rinse :  then  dye  it  in  a 
bath  of  quercitron  bark  of  an  equal  weight  with  the  alum 
used.f  At  the  close  of  the  dyeing,  throw  in  a  pound  of 
whiting  for  a  hundred  pounds  of  goods. 

BUFF  YELLOW.— Although  buff  yellow  may  be  dyed 
with  the  usual  yellow  drugs,  it  can  be  more  permanently 
dyed  by  means  of  iron  stain.  Dip  the  cloth  in  water  im- 
pregnated with  a  strong  solution  of  iron  slowly  made  in  aqua- 
fortis, diluted  with  an  equal  quantity  of  water;  which  when 


*  The  fistic  liquor,  should  be  used  not  later  than  two  or  three  days  after  it  is 
made,  for  it  is  apt  to  spoil. 

t"I  am  fully  persuaded,"  says  Mr.  Cooper,  "that  the  proportion  of  quercitron 
bark  prescribed  by  Dr.  Bancroft,  is  greatly  too  small  for  a  full  color  :  twice  the 
quantity  he  prescribes  would  not  be  too  much."  The  bark  used  by  Dr.  Bancroft, 
for  his  experiments,  consisted,  we  dare  say,  of  selected  samples." 

49 


386 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


made  must  be  used  in  a  few  days  or  else  kept  from  the  air. 
It  will  require  two  gallons  for  one  hundred  pounds  of  cloth, 
mixed  with  a  sufficient  quantity  of  warm  water.  Turn  the 
cloth  in  it  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  Drain :  then  run 
through  a  mixture  of  lime  water,  three  or  four  pecks  of  lime 
to  water  sufficient  to  work  the  cloth  in :  or  instead  of  lime 
use  three  pounds  of  potash  to  the  same  quantity  of  water : 
then  expose  the  cloth,  after  washing,  to  the  air,  until  the 
greenish  color  turns  to  a  buff.  Repeat  these  alternate  dip- 
pings, washings,  and  airings,  till  the  desired  color  is  pro- 
duced. 

For  common  goods,  dissolve  for  one  hundred  pounds  of 
goods,  twenty  pounds  of  copperas  in  water :  work  the  goods 
in  this  liquor  (warm)  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour :  then  in  a 
bath  of  lime  water  or  potash.  Proceed  as  above,  always 
airing  the  goods  to  give  time  for  the  color  to  become  buff, 
after  each  immersion  in  the  lime  or  the  potash  liquor.  This 
color  diluted,  is  a  most  excellent  ground  for  grays,  and  for  all 
colors  in  which  gray  is  meant  to  form  a  part. 

HENDRICKS'S  PATENT  PROCESS.*— Mr.  Hermon 
Hendricks,  of  Dunkirk,  France,  informs  us  that  he  obtains 
a  beautiful  yellow  on  wool  or  woolen  cloth,  "  by  means  of  the 
double  decomposition  of  chromate  of  potash,  or  bichromate 
of  potash,  or  chromate  of  soda,  and  a  soluble  salt  of  lead." 
In  order  to  obtain  this  color,  the  cloth  must  be  passed  through 
the  following  series  of  baths,  and  in  the  order  that  they  are 
numbered : — 

Bath  No.  1. — This  bath  is  prepared  with  acetate  of  lead 
(or  any  soluble  salts  of  lead),  of  the  specific  gravity  of  two 
degrees  of  the  areometer.  This  bath  is  to  be  heated  by 
steam,  not  condensed ',  and  of  a  temperature  of  from  100°  to 
105°  F. 

Bath  No.'  2. — This  bath  is  prepared  with  chromate  of 
potash,  or  bichromate  of  potash  (the  chromate  of  soda  will 
answer  equally  well),  of  the  specific  gravity  of  three  degrees. 


*  Mr.  Hendricks's  process  for  dyeing  blue  on  wool  without  indigo,  will  be  de- 
scribed in  the  next  chapter. 


YELLOW. 


387 


This  bath  is  heated  by  means  of  steam,  like  the  foregoing,  or 
bath  No.  1.  This  bath,  however  is  only  to  be  heated  to 
160°  F. 

Bath  No.  3. — This  bath  is  composed  of  water,  and  may 
be  used  at  a  temperature  of  from  60°  to  70°  F. 

Bath  No.  4. — This  bath  is  composed  of  water  slightly 
acidulated,  with  acetate  of  lead,  so  as  to  have  only  a  very 
faint  taste.  The  cloth,  says  the  patentee,  after  passing 
through  the  baths  in  regular  succession,  is  finished  in  the 
usual  manner. 

Mr.  Hendricks  claims  as  of  his  invention,  "  the  application 
of  the  process  of  the  double  decomposition  of  chromate  of 
potash,  or  bichromate  of  potash,  or  chromate  of  soda,  and  a 
soluble  salt  of  lead,  to  the  dyeing  of  wool  and  woolen  fabrics 
yellow."  This  process,  however,  is  not  of  the  invention  of 
Mr.  Hendricks.  We  hope  the  gentlemen  will  waive  all 
claim  to  the  composition  of  bath  No.  3. 


CHAPTER  III. 


OF  BLUE,  ORANGE,  AND  GREEN. 

PROCESSES  OF   DYEING  BLUE  ON  WOOL. 

Woal  or  Pastel  Vats,  their  Construction,  &c. — Setting  and  Managing  the  Vats — 
Precautions  to  be  observed — Putrefaction,  and  the  Remedy — Kober's  Improved 
Woad  Vat — Hendricks's  Process  for  superseding  the  use  of  Indigo  in  Dyeing 
Blue  on  Wool— Orange— Green— Another  Process  for  Dyeing  Green. 

WOAD  OR  PASTEL  VATS. — The  pastel  or  woad  vats, 
are  set  in  the  ground,  and  project  above  the  floor,  no  higher 
than  is  necessary  for  the  dyers  to  work  them  conveniently. 
They  are  nine  or  ten  feet  deep,  and  from  five  to  six  feet  in 
diameter;  made  of  staves  six  inches  broad  and  two  inches 
thick,  bound  with  iron  hoops  about  three  feet  asunder.  The 
bottom  instead  of  being  made  of  wood,  may  be  made  with 
cement,  such  as  lime,  pounded  bricks  and  leached  ashes. 
The  drugs  of  which  the  vat  is  composed,  are  stirred  up  by 
the  rake  * 

The  cloth  is  worked  by  means  of  hooks  fastened  to  the  end 
of  a  staff.  An  iron  hoop  covered  with  a  net  whose  meshes 
are  about  an  inch  square,  is  let  down  into  the  vat  to  prevent 
the  cloth  from  mixing  with  the  grounds  or  sediment  at  the 
bottom.f  Sometimes  brandy  puncheons,  or  well  cleansed  oil 
puncheons,  are  used,  as  vats  for  this  purpose ;  but  they 
should  be  iron  hooped,  and  the  hoops  painted.  The  boiler  or 
cauldron  should  be  placed  near  the  vat. 

Fig.  20,  represents  an  apparatus  suited  to  the  purpose  of 
vat  dyeing,  by  which  any  number  of  vats  may  be  heated  at 
once.  The  heat  is  conveyed  by  the  fluid  along  the  pipes  and 
round  a  casing  or  interior  tube  placed  in  the  vat,  and  may  be 


*  Cooper  on  Dyeing,  p.  35. 


t  Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  54. 


BLUE. 


389 


increased  or  diminished  Fig- 20- 

by  turning  the  stop- 
cock, k,  k,  represents 
a  generator  and  counter 
generator.  I,  I,  7,  rep- 
resents the  vats  in  sec- 
tion, n,  n,  the  circular 
tube  or  casing  within  which  the  hot  fluid  circulates,  m,  m, 
the  stopcocks  through  which  the  fluid  passes  into  the  casing 
of  the  vats,  o,  o,  o,  o,  are  the  pipes  through  which  the  fluid 
circulates. 

The  process  for  setting  a  woad  vat  is  as  follows : — 

1.  For  a  vat  of  nine  feet  deep  by  five  feet  and  three  quarters  over,  take  about 
four  hundred  weight  of  woad,  break  it  into  small  pieces,  and  throw  it  into  the  vat. 
Boil  in  the  contiguous  boiler,  thirty-three  pounds  of  weld  with  a  sufficient  quantity 
of  water  for  the  vat ;  add  as  much  madder,  and  about  a  bushel  or  a  little  more  of 
bran;  continue  the  boiling  for  half  an  hour;  add  a  few  buckets  of  water;  let  the 
liquor  settle,  and  take  out  the  weld;*  turn  the  liquor  into  the  vat,  stirring  con- 
stantly ;  stir  the  liquor  well  afterwards  in  the  vat  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour, 
to  mix  together  all  the  contents ;  then  cover  up  the  vat  close  for  six  hours  ;  open 
it  at  the  end  of  that  time ;  stir  up  the  contents  for  half  an  hour ;  do  so  every  three 
hours  for  three  or  four  times. 

2.  When  blue  veins  begin  to  appear,  add  between  eight  and  nine  pounds  of  good 
fresh  burnt  lime ;  lime  that  has  remained  exposed  to  the  air  for  some  time  is  good 
for  little ;  if  no  other  can  be  got,  use  the  more  of  it ;  but  spent  lime  is  worse  than 
useless.  The  vat  now  puts  on  a  new  character ;  its  color  is  much  deepened,  and 
the  vapor  from  it  is  more  penetrating.  When  indigo  is  used  with  the  woad  vat, 
this  is  the  point  of  time  when  it  is  to  be  put  in,  being  first  carefully  ground ;  the 
quantity  depends  on  the  shade  of  blue  required :  from  five  to  five-and-twenty 
pounds  may  be  used. 

3.  On  plunging  in  the  rake,  if  a  fine  blue  froth  appear  on  the  liquor,  the  con- 
tents should  be  well  stirred  up  twice  in  six  hours,  and  one  or  two  pounds  more  of 
lime  added ;  the  surface  must  not  be  exposed  to  the  air,  any  longer  than  is  necessary 
to  stir  it;  indeed  it  would  be  an  improvement  to  have  an  opening  in  the  cover  that 
would  just  admit  the  rake,  and  a  lid  to  shut  down  upon  the  opening.  During  all 
this  time,  the  warmth  is  to  be  preserved  in  the  liquor  by  covering  it  as  close  as 


4.  The  vat  is  in  proper  order  for  dyeing,  when  the  sediment,  and  the  body  of 
the  liquor  are  of  a  fine  brownish  green  color — when  the  froth  at  the  top  exposed 
to  the  air,  is  of  a  fine  blue — when  a  pattern  immersed  for  a  couple  of  hours  in  the 


*  "The  liquor  need  not  be  very  clear;  if  some  of  the  bran  and  madder  should  go 
into  the  vat,  I  see  no  harm  it  can  do." — Cooper. 


390 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


liquor,  comes  out  a  grass  green  color,  and  gradually  turns  blue  on  exposure  to 
the  air. 

It  often  occurs  that  a  vat  will  not  furnish  a  good  color  be- 
cause it  is  too  cold ;  occasioned  by  its  having  been  over- 
charged with  lime.  Sometimes,  also,  the  vat  runs  into  a 
state  of  putrefaction. 

In  the  first  case,  all  that  is  necessary,  is  to  heat  part  of  the 
liquor,  and  return  it  hot  into  the  vat,  stirring  up  the  contents 
for  twenty  minutes  with  the  rake,  and  then  covering  it  up 
closely.  In  the  second  case,  reheat  in  the  boiler  part  of  the 
liquor ;  then  add  about  a  couple  of  pecks  of  bran,  and  four 
or  five  pounds  of  madder  ;  stir  these  in  the  liquor,  but  do  not 
rake  up  the  sediment ;  and  let  remain  covered.  If  the  fault 
is  trifling,  the  addition  of  the  bran  and  madder  will  answer 
without  raking.  Let  the  vat  now  rest  for  a  day  or  two,  or 
even  longer. 

Should  the  contents  of  the  vat  putrefy,  which  may  be 
known  by  the  disappearing  of  the  blue  veins,  and  of  the  blue 
froth— by  the  rusty  color  of  the  liquor — by  the  sediment 
spontaneously  beginning  to  rise — and  by  the  fetid  smell  of 
the  vat,  lime  must  be  added,  and  the  grounds  raked  up :  in 
two  hours  more,  a  little  lime  may  be  added,  and  the  sedi- 
ment stirred  again  :  and  so  on,  cautiously,  till  the  evil  be 
remedied.* 

It  is  evident,  then,  that  the  skill  in  treating  the  woad-vat, 
depends  on  the  proper  addition  of  lime  to  prevent  the  hasty 
fermentation  of  the  vegetable  substances  employed  to  dis- 
oxygenate  the  indigo,  which  would  destroy  the  coloring  mat- 
ter ;  and  to  dissolve  a  part  of  the  coloring  matter  so  disoxy- 
genated.  The  lime  is  gradually  precipitated  in  the  form  of 
pulverized  limestone  by  the  addition  of  carbonic  acid  pro- 
ceeding from  the  gradual  fermentation  of  the  madder,  the 
bran,  and  the  decoction  of  weld.  Hence  the  necessity  of 
now  and  then  adding  a  small  quantity  of  fresh  lime,  to  re- 
new the  necessary  solvent. 


*  Some  dyers  add  crude  tartar  to  a  vat  so  circumstanced,  with  a  view  to  neu- 
tralize the  lime ;  but  this  practice  does  not  appear  to  be  sanctioned  by  common 

usage. — Cooper. 


BLUE. 


391 


Before  the  dyer  enters  the  goods,  the  vat  should  be  stirred, 
and  left  to  settle  for  about  two  hours.  He  then  lets  down  his 
cross,  net,  or  trellis,  to  prevent  the  sediment  and  cloth  coming; 
in  contact.  The  wool,  whether  unspun,  or  in  the  yarn,  or  in 
the  piece,  should  be  pressed  out  of  warm  water  before  enter- 
ing it  in  the  vat.  It  is  not  easy  to  dye  an  even  color  in  a 
full,  rich  vat :  it  is  better  done  for  bright  colors,  by  making 
use  of  vats  that  have  been  partly  worked,  and  are  beginning 
to  cool,  finishing  in  a  fresh  vat.  When  goods  have  been 
dyed  blue,  they  should  be  carefully  washed  to  get  rid  of  all 
color  that  adheres  mechanically  only ;  and  indeed  they 
would  be  improved  by  being  fulled  with  a  small  quantity  of 
white  soap,  which  has  no  injurious  effect  upon  the  blue,  and 
cleans  the  cloth  from  any  superfluous  sediment. 

No  distinction  has  been  made,  in  the  foregoing  description, 
between  the  pastel  and  the  woad  vat,  because  the  process  is 
the  same  in  both  vats.*  In  setting  the  woad  vat,  the  old 
liquor  of  a  spent  madder  bath  may  be  used  to  save  madder, 
which  like  the  weld  is  of  no  use  as  a  coloring  substance,  but 
only  as  a  fermenting  ingredient.  In  this  point  of  view,  the 
weld,  especially  in  this  country,  might  be  saved,  by  increasing 
the  proportions  of  madder  and  bran.t 

It  is  thought  that  five  pounds  of  indigo,  of  the  best  quality, 
contain  as  much  coloring  matter  as  two  hundred  pounds  of 
woad.  The  woad  vat  should  never  have  lime  added  to  it 
just  before  it  is  reheated.  In  Holland,  to  save  the  trouble  of 
reheating  the  vat  repeatedly,  they  have  metal  vats,  six  feet 
deep,  four  and  a  half  at  the  bottom,  and  five  and  a  half  at 
the  top  ;  the  bottom  part  for  two  and  a  half  feet  upward,  is 
made  of  lead,  and  the  upper  part  for  three  and  a  half  feet  is 
of  copper.  The  vat  is  surrounded  with  a  brick  wall  six 
inches  thick,  and  the  intermediate  space  is  filled  with  warm 
embers  or  wood  ashes,  high  enough  to  keep  up  a  continued 


*  The  woad  vat  is  often  used,  to  give  a  blue  ground  to  black. 

t  "  I  do  not  think,"  says  Mr.  Cooper,  "quercitron  bark  would  be  a  proper  substi- 
tute, because  it  is  more  astringent,  and  not  so  fermentable  as  weld,  but  I  think 
weld  might  be  superseded  by  common  hay." 


392 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


moderate  heat.  When  cold,  the  embers  can  be  removed,  by 
taking  out  a  brick  or  two  at  the  bottom. 

The  lime  should  be  slacked  before  using  it.  There  is  no 
advantage  in  letting  the  bran  liquor  become  sour,  either  in 
the  vat  or  out  of  it.  These  instructions  arc  all  that  are,  prin- 
cipally, necessary  when  it  is  intended  to  dye  blue  with  woad, 
either  with  or  without  indigo.  Woad  of  itself  produces  a 
durable  blue,  but  without  indigo,  a  large  quantity  of  it  must 
be  used  to  obtain  a  color  of  any  considerable  depth,  for  rea- 
sons already  stated.  But  by  mixing  woad  with  indigo,  vats 
are  formed  very  rich  in  color,  which  are  almost  the  only  ones 
in  use  for  dyeing  wool  and  woolen  goods.  For  further  details 
on  this  subject,  see  chapter  V.  Part  III. 

KOBER'S  IMPROVED  WOAD  VAT.  — In  a  patent 
granted  to  Mr.  Charles  Kober,  of  Leeds,  on  the  7th  of  March, 
1840,  for  improvements  in  the  mode  of  fixing  color  on  wool, 
we  find  a  claim  to  "  the  use  of  soda  and  bran  for  dissolving 
the  indigo  in  the  vats  for  dyeing  blue,  whereby  the  indigo  is 
better  fixed  in  the  wool  and  at  a  less  expense  than  is  incurred 
by  the  use  of  woad,  madder,  and  bran,"  which  are  usually 
employed.  This  patent  contains  two  other  claims,  the  one 
relating  to  green,  and  the  other  to  the  mode  of  fixing  color  on 
wool  or  other  goods.  The  first  (green)  is  described  in  this 
chapter,  under  the  article  Green.  The  second,  or  the  mode 
of  fixing  color  on  cloth,  under  the  title  of  Kobefs  Mordant 
for  Wool,  and  will  be  described  in  the  next  chapter. 

The  improvement  on  the  woad  vat,  or  mode  of  dyeing 
blue  by  the  use  of  woad  above  referred  to,  is  as  follows  : — 

In  a  seven  feet  vat,  the  water  being  heated  to  125°  F., 
throw  in  sixty-five  pounds  of  bran,  thirty-five  of  common 
soda,  (which  has  about  23  per  cent,  of  carbonate  of  soda,) 
four  of  indigo,  and  the  usual  quantity  of  lime.  The  vat  is 
worked  from  110°  to  118°  F.  three  or  four  times  during  the 
day,  without  stirring  ;  and  in  the  evening  heated  to  a  temper- 
ature of  125°.  Four  pounds  of  lime,  six  of  bran,  and  five  of 
soda,  are  now  added,  with  such  an  additional  quantity  of  in- 
digo as  may  be  required  for  the  following  day  ;  after  this  ad- 
dition the  vat  is  stirred.    If  the  vat  has  been  working  during 


BLUE. 


393 


the  day,  the  above  quantity  of  lime,  bran,  and  soda,  is  added 
every  evening,  together  with  the  requisite  quantity  of  indigo. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  state  the  exact  quantity  of  indigo  re- 
quired, as  any  amount,  from  half  a  pound  to  twenty-five 
pounds,  may  be  added,  according  to  the  shade  of  color  re- 
quired to  be  produced  the  following  day.  After  proceeding 
in  this  manner  for  eight  or  ten  weeks,  the  sediment  is  re- 
moved, and  with  the  liquor  in  the  old  vat,  the  operator  sets  a 
new  one,  adding  thirteen  pounds  of  bran,  and  ten  of  soda, 
with  as  much  lime  and  indigo  as  may  be  required.  The  use 
of  lime  being  to  check  the  fermentation  produced  by  the  bran, 
it  is  impossible  to  state  the  exact  quantity  which  may  be  re- 
quired ;  but  enough  must  be  used  to  check  the  fermenta- 
tion in  the  vat  to  such  a  degree  as  will  deprive  the  indigo 
of  oxygen,  without  an  immoderate  fermentation,  which  is 
very  prejudicial.  The  vat,  in  which  the  soda  is  used,  must 
be  perfectly  yellow ;  that  is  to  say,  the  indigo  must  be  per- 
fectly deprived  of  its  oxygen,  or,  as  it  is  generally  termed, 
the  indigo  must  be  sprang,  in  which  case  the  vat  appears 
yellow.  By  the  use  of  soda-ashes,  (which  have  about  46  per 
cent,  of  carbonate  of  soda,)  instead  of  common  soda,  half  the 
quantity  will  produce  the  same  effect.  Pearlash  may  like- 
wise be  employed,  if  the  price  will  admit  of  it ;  and  fine 
sharps  may  be  used  instead  of  bran. 

The  patentee  claims  the  use  and  application  to  indigo  of 
soda  and  bran,  or  soda-ashes  and  bran,  either  by  themselves, 
or  mixed  with  woad  and  madder,  "  whereby,"  he  says,  "  the 
color  is  fixed  in  the  wool  better  and  cheaper,  than  by  the 
use  of  woad  and  madder  alone." 

A  blue  dye  may  likewise  be  given  by  a  solution  of  indigo 
in  sulphuric  acid.  This  process  was  discovered  by  Barth,  at 
Grossenhayn,  in  Saxony,  about  the  year  1740,  and  is  hence 
called  the  Saxon  blue  dye.  The  chemical  nature  of  this 
process  has  been  already  fully  explained  in  chapter  V.  Part 
III.,  article  Preparation  of  Chemic. 

With  sulphate  of  indigo,  not  only  blues  of  every  shade  are 
dyed,  (as  we  shall  hereafter  see)  but  also  green,  olive,  gray, 
as  also  a  fast  ground  to  logwood  blues  ;  for  the  latter  purpose 

50 


394 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  preparatory  boil  is  given  with  alum,  tartar,  sulphates  of 
copper  and  iron,  and  the  blue  solution  ;  after  which  the  goods 
are  dyed  in  a  logwood  bath  containing  a  little  potash. 

HENDRICKS'S  PATENT  PROCESS. — In  the  last  chap- 
ter, when  treating  of  yellow,  we  referred  to  Mr.  Hendricks's 
process  for  dyeing  blue  on  wool  without  indigo.  We  shall 
now  give  that  process,  and  which  the  patentee  observes  is 
"  intended  to  be  employed  as  a  substitute  for  indigo  in  dyeing 
woolen  and  other  materials  of  a  blue  color  ;  or  as  a  founda- 
tion for  black  and  other  colors,  in  which  blue  forms  the  base 
or  fundamental  tint." 

The  process  of  preparing  and  applying  this  dyeing  mate- 
rial is  soon  told  ;  but  the  patentee,  from  what  motive,  is  best 
known  to  himself,  has  thought  proper  to  extend  his  descrip- 
tion to  such  an  enormous  length,  that  a  literal  copy  of  the 
document  could  not  be  obtained  from  the  Inrolment  office  for 
a  smaller  sum  than  about  eighty-five  pounds  sterling,  or  about 
four  hundred  dollars. 

A  mixture  is  made  of  equal  parts,  by  weight,  of  animal 
substances  and  potash,  there  having  been  previously  mixed 
with  the  potash  scraps  of  cast  or  forged  iron,  in  the  pro- 
portion of  one  part  scraps  to  fifty  parts  potash.  The  animal 
substances  to  be  employed,  are  dried  blood,  horn  scrapings, 
horns  and  hoofs  of  animals,  hair,  feathers,  refuse  woolen, 
leather,  leather-cuttings,  and  bones.  This  mixture  is  cal- 
cined in  a  close  cylinder,  and  agitated  during  the  operation. 
The  calcining  process  being  complete,  the  calcined  matter  is 
taken  out  of  the  cylinder  and  cooled  in  conical  moulds. 
When  the  material  so  operated  upon  has  become  cold,  it  is 
to  be  moistened :  water  being  used  for  the  first  process,  and 
afterwards  the  weak  solution  of  prussiate,  arising  from  the 
washing  of  the  calcined  substances, — in  the  proportion  of 
one  quart,  to  each  pound  of  calcined  matter,  stirring  with  the 
rake  at  intervals.  After  a  few  hours,  the  calcined  matter  is 
again  placed  in  the  cylinder,  filling  it  three  parts  full ;  water 
is  then  admitted  for  the  first  process,  and  the  weak  solutions 
of  prussiate  afterwards. 

A  reservoir  on  one  side  of  the  cylinder  (having  a  cock),  is 


BLUE. 


395 


now  filled,  half  full,  with  a  mixture  of  one  part  sulphuric 
acid,  and  ten  parts  water,  the  calcined  matter  is  then  boiled 
up,  and  when  boiled  sufficiently  is  run  off  and  filtered.  The 
process  of  boiling  and  filtering  is  to  be  repeated  several  times  ; 
after  which  some  concentrated  solution  of  potash  is  added, 
and  the  materials  again  boiled  up  and  filtered  ;  from  thence 
it  is  poured  into  a  suitable  vessel  and  crystalized  ;  and  when 
the  crystals  are  formed,  the  prussiate  of  potash  is  obtained.* 

The  cloth  to  be  dyed  is  passed  through  the  following 
eighteen  baths,  in  the  order  in  which  they  are  enumerated  : — 

1.  The  Acid  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  one  part  muriatic  acid  to  fifty  parts  of 
water,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  77°  to  100°  F. 

2.  The  Alkaline  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  one  part  carbonate  of  soda  to  one 
hundred  parts  water,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  77°  to  100°  F. 

3.  The  Alkaline  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  carbonate  of  soda,  of  the  strength 
of  three  degrees  of  the  areometer,  for  salts,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of 
from  77°  to  100°  F. 

4.  The  Ferruginous  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  proto-salts  of  iron  (as  for  in- 
stance, the  neutral  proto- muriate),  of  the  strength  of  six  degrees,  and  is  employed 
at  a  temperature  of  from  144°  to  167°  F. 

5.  The  Protoxided  Ferruginous  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  proto-salt  of  iron, 
and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  144°  to  167°  F. 

6.  The  Alkaline  Bath. — This  bath  is  the  same  as  No.  2. 

7.  Tlie  Carbonated  Saponaceous  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  soap  neutralized, 
of  the  strength  of  \  of  a  degree,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  190° 
to  212°  F. 

8.  The  Prussiate  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  prussiate  of  potash,  and  muriatic 
acid,  mixed  according  to  the  proportion  required,  to  vary  the  color,  and  is  employ- 
ed at  a  temperature  of  from  122°  to  124°  F. 

9.  The  Prussiate  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  prussiate  of  potash  and  muriatic 
acid,  of  the  strength  of  one  degree,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  122° 
to  144°  F. 

10.  The  Protoxided  Ferruginous  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  proto-muriate  of 
iron,  of  the  strength  of  four  degrees,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from 
190°  to  212°  F. 

11.  The  Per-oxidated  Ferruginous  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  any  of  the  per- 
salts  of  iron,  of  the  strength  of  a  i  of  a  degree,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature 
of  from  122°  to  144°  F. 

12.  The  Acid  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  water  slightly  acidulated  with  muri- 
atic, or  any  other  acid,  except  nitric  acid  (which  would  turn  the  articles  yellow), 
and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  144°  to  167°  F. 


*  The  mode  of  making  prussiate  of  soda  is  precisely  the  same  as  that  of  making 
prussiate  of  potash,  except  that  soda  is  substituted  for  potash. 


396 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


13.  The  Ammoniacal  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  one  part  liquid  ammonia  to 
two  hundred  parts  water,  and  is  employed  at  an  ordinary  temperature,  or  hand 
heat. 

14.  The  Aluminous  or  Tin  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  the  muriates  or  alumine 
of  tin,  of  the  strength  of  |  of  a  degree,  and  water  charged  with  an  earthy  car- 
bonate, such  as  lime,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  112°  to  144°  F. 

15.  The  Red  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  madder  and  is  slightly  acidulated  with 
boracic  acid,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  190°  to  212°  F. 

16.  The  Hot  Stove  Bath. — This  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  122°  to 
114°  F.,  for  increasing  or  diminishing  the  intensity  of  color. 

17.  The  Ammoniacal  Bath. — This  bath  is  the  same  as  No.  13,  and  is  employed 
at  an  ordinary  temperature,  or  hand  heat. 

18.  The  Acid  Vapor  Bath. — This  is  composed  of  either  sulphuric,  muriatic,  or 
acetic  acid,  and  is  employed  at  a  temperature  of  from  167°  to  190°  F. ;  the  goods 
are  then  finished  in  the  usual  manner. 

The  patentee  claims,  Jirst, — the  process  of  calcining  and 
constantly  agitating  the  mixture  of  animal  and  other  sub- 
stances, in  closed  cylinders  or  other  closed  vessels,  for  pro- 
ducing the  prussiate  of  potash,  and  the  prussiate  of  soda. 
Secondly. — Fixing  the  oxide  of  iron  on  textile  or  other  sub- 
stances, by  means  of  single  or  double  decomposition  of  the 
protosalt  of  iron  ;  fixing  the  deutoxide  of  iron  on  the  like  sub- 
stances, by  immersing  them  in  a  bath,  formed  of  the  protox- 
ide of  iron,  in  a  neutral  state ;  producing  a  uniform  oxygena- 
tion of  the  protoxide  of  iron  by  means  of  a  current  of  warm 
air,  and  the  use  of  an  alkaline  and  saponaceous  bath,  before 
uniting  the  oxide  of  iron  with  the  ferrocyanic  acid ;  and  after- 
wards by  passing  them  into  a  bath  composed  of  a  soluble  fer- 
rocyanate  or  prussiate ;  and  thus  producing  a  uniformity  of 
color ;  and  the  employment  of  a  stove  or  bath,  for  reviving, 
increasing,  or  diminishing  the  intensity  of  color,  when  dyeing 
blues  without  indigo. 

ORANGE. — Orange  is  a  compound  of  three  parts  of  yel- 
low and  five  of  red.  Dye  in  the  scarlet  bath,  with  the  addi- 
tion of  quercitron. 

GREEN. — Green  is  composed  of  three  parts  of  yellow  and 
eight  of  blue.  The  blue  should  be  dyed  first,  whether  the 
blue  vat  be  used,  or  the  sulphate  of  indigo  :*  for  the  yellow 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  article  Preparation  of  Chemic. 


GREEN.  397 

dye  is  injured  both  by  the  alkali  of  the  one,  and  the  acid  of 
the  other. 

The  pastel  vat  is  sometimes  employed,  to  give  the  blue 
ground  for  this  color,  but  for  some  kinds  of  green,  the  chemic 
or  sulphate  of  indigo  is  preferred.  The  blue  ground  which 
is  given  by  the  vat,  should  be  proportioned  to  the  kind  of 
green  wanted.  Thus,  for  drakes-neck  green,  a  deep  blue  is 
required,  and  for  parrot-green,  a  sky-blue  ground.  It  is 
easy  to  see  that  a  great  variety  of  greens  may  be  produced, 
not  only  according  to  the  proportions  of  the  indigo  and  yel- 
low dyes  employed,  but  according  to  the  nature  of  the  yel- 
low substance.  For  obtaining  a  decided  green,  however, 
fustic  is  preferred  to  the  other  yellow  coloring  substances, 
because  its  color  is  less  affected  by  sulphuric  acid.  Fustic, 
also,  agrees  well  with  alum  as  a  mordant. 

In  order  to  avoid  this  effect  with  quercitron  bark,  Bancroft 
directs  us  to  dye  the  stuff  blue  at  first,  to  rinse  well,  and  give 
afterwards  a  preparation  or  mordanting  composed  of  three 
parts  of  washed  chalk,  and  ten  or  twelve  of  alum,  for  100 
pounds  of  cloth.  It  is  to  be  boiled  for  an  hour.  Then  with- 
out renewing  the  bath,  10  or  12  parts  of  quercitron  are  intro- 
duced, and  the  dyeing  is  continued.  At  the  end  of  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  one  part  of  chalk  is  added,  and  this  addition  is 
repeated  at  intervals  of  six  or  eight  minutes,  till  a  fine  green 
color  is  obtained.* 

It  is  mentioned  as  a  fault  in  Saxon  blue,  that  it  has  a 
greenish  cast,  proceeding  probably  from  the  slight  alteration 
that  sulphuric  acid  produces  on  the  particles  of  indigo ;  it, 
likewise,  as  well  as  Saxon  green,  is  said  to  have  less  dura- 
bility than  the  blues  and  greens  obtained  by  means  of  the 
vat. 

KOBER'S  PROCESS  OF  DYEING  GREEN.— In  this 
chapter,  article  Roberts  Improved  Woad  Vat,  we  referred 
to  an  improved  method  of  dyeing  green,  as  Mr.  Kober  calls 
it,  and  which  method  we  will  now  describe ;  although,  we 


*  Elements  of  the  Art  of  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  266. 


398 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


are  satisfied,  that  the  same  thing  was  done  in  this  country, 
long  before  the  date  of  Mr.  Kober's  patent. 

The  invention  consists  in  dyeing  the  wool  blue,  and  then 
manufacturing  it  from  the  blue  wool,  so  as  to  make  it  what 
is  called  partly -finished  cloth,  with  a  white,  or  colored  list,  and 
then  adding  the  yellow  ingredients,  to  the  cloth,  instead  of  to 
the  wool ;  "by  which  means,"  he  says,  "  a  perfectly  fast 
green  color  will  be  obtained,  similar  in  appearance  to  wool- 
dyed  green,  but  much  faster.  Every  kind  of  yellow  ware 
may  be  used,  but  fustic  is  preferred  ;  and  in  order  to  fasten 
the  color,  hydrochloric  acid,  saturated  with  tin,  is  used,  to 
which  is  added  as  much  water  as  will  give  the  solution  a 
specific  gravity  1-2612,  or  80°  Baume  ;  and  of  this  solution 
from  six  to  seven  pounds  is  used  to  every  hundred  weight 
of  cloth,  besides  the  usual  quantity  of  alum  and  tartar." 
This  solution  could  not  be  applied  to  wool  in  fleeces,  as  it 
would  be  destructive  to  the  use  of  soap,  and  consequently  to 
the  milling  process. 


CHAPTER  IV, 


OF  PURPLE,  BROWN,  GRAY,  AND  BLACK. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  PURPLE  ON  WOOL. 

«JL-Ifal4.i 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Purples,  Violets,  Lilacs,  Colombines,  &c. — Brown,  Gray, 
Black — Kober's  Mordant  for  Wool — General  Remarks  on  these  subjects. 

PURPLE. — Purples,  violets,  lilacs,  colombines,  &c,  having 
been  already  treated  of  extensively,  our  observations  in  this 
place  will,  consequently,  be  brief. 

Purple  arises  from  the  union  of  red  and  blue,  in  the  pro- 
portions of  five  parts  of  red  to  eight  of  blue.* 

According  to  Hellot  and  Berthollet,  goods  dyed  scarlet,  take 
a  superadded  blue  dye  unequally.  They  must  be  dyed  of  a 
light  or  sky  blue  first.  Then  give  them  a  mordant  or  prepa- 
ration liquor  of  alum  and  tartar,  two  ounces  and  a  half  of 
alum,  and  one  ounce  of  tartar ;  work  in  this  for  an  hour ; 
drain,  and  cool ;  then  run  through  a  dyeing  or  finishing  bath 
of  cochineal,  half  or  two-thirds  as  strong  as  a  full  scarlet 
bath,  according  to  the  shade  of  purple  required. 

Purple  on  wool  may  also  be  obtained  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — Alum  four  ounces,  tartar  two  ounces,  as  the  mordant 
or  preparation  for  a  pound  of  wool ;  boil  for  an  hour  and  a 
half ;  drain,  cool,  and  rinse  :  then  enter  it  into  a  finishing  or 
dye-liquor  of  three-fourths  of  a  pound  of  madder,  and  two 
ounces  of  red  wood  for  each  pound  of  wool.  Do  not  let  the 
liquor  exceed  a  heat  of  145°  F.  Wince  for  an  hour,  drain, 
cool,  rinse,  and  give  one  dip  in  the  blue  vat. 

According  to  Homassel,  purples  and  violets  of  the  finest 


*  See  chapter  VIII,  Part  III.,  article  Preliminary  Observations. 


400 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tints  can  only  be  made  by  means  of  a  mordant  or  composi- 
tion of  bismuth  dissolved  in  nitric  acid.  To  make  this  solu- 
tion, proceed  as  follows  : — 

Dissolve,  gradually,  in  the  strongest  nitric  acid,  bismuth  carefully  reduced  to  a 
coarse  powder  in  a  mortar,  taking  care  that  there  be  no  dirt,  or  extraneous  matter, 
particularly  no  ferruginous  matter.  Add  the  powdered  bismuth  by  degrees  to  the 
nitric  acid,  to  the  amount  of  three  ounces  of  the  semi-metal  to  the  pound  of  acid: 
add  no  water,  or  sal  ammoniac.  When  all  is  dissolved,  pour  off  the  clear  into  a 
bottle  with  a  glass  stopper.  Make  no  more  than  is  wanted  to  use  at  a  time,  for  it 
is  very  apt  to  oxygenate  by  exposure  to  the  air. 

This  mordant  requires  no  alum  or  tartar ;  use  about  two 
ounces  of  this  solution,  in  water,  to  the  pound  of  cloth,  and 
for  bright  colors,  add  also  about  half  an  ounce  of  cochineal  to 
the  pound  of  goods. 

Violet  does  not  require  so  deep  a  blue,  or  so  deep  a  red  as 
purple.  Frequently  these  colors  are  finished  in  a  scarlet  bath, 
adding  the  quantity  of  tartar  and  cochineal  that  may  be 
thought  necessary. 

Another  method  of  obtaining  violet,  is  to  give  a  light  blue 
ground  in  the  vat ;  then  half  an  ounce  of  cochineal,  and  two 
ounces  of  the  solution  of  bismuth,  to  the  pound  of  goods. 
Boil  for  an  hour.  For  light  violet  give  half  an  ounce  of 
cochineal  per  pound  of  goods,  (after  having  given  in  the  first 
instance,  a  preparation  of  two  ounces  of  solution  of  bismuth) 
and  boil  for  half  an  hour  ;  without  any  previous  blue  ground. 

For  lilacs,  pigeons-breast,  &c.,  the  goods  may  be  run 
through  liquors  that  have  served  for  violets,  adding  a  little 
alum  and  tartar.  The  blue  ground  is  made  of  such  a  tint, 
and  the  cochineal  added  in  the  finishing,  in  such  proportion 
as  the  color  requires.  When  a  reddish  shade  is  wanted,  such 
as  for  peach-blossom,  a  little  of  the  scarlet  composition  or 
nitro-muriate  of  tin  should  be  added.  If  a  very  bright  tint 
be  desired,  though  the  quantity  of  cochineal  may  be  dimin- 
ished, yet  the  quantity  of  tartar  must  not  be  decreased. 

From  the  foregoing  observations,  it  is  obvious  that  the  va- 
rious shades  of  all  the  colors  above  mentioned,  may  be  ob- 
tained by  slight  variations  of  the  blue  ground,  and  of  the  pro- 
portions of  cochineal,  alum,  and  tartar.  Also,  by  using 
Brazil,  madder,  or  a  mixture  of  these,  with  or  without  the 


BROWN. 


401 


cochineal,  all  of  which  the  practical  dyer  understands  pro- 
portioning, perhaps,  much  better  than  the  writer. 

BROWN. — Brown  is  uniformly  a  tertiary  compound  or 
hue  in  shade,  in  which  red  and  yellow  predominate. 

Brown  may  be  produced  by  direct  dyes.  The  decoction  of 
oak  bark  dyes  wool  a  fast  brown  of  different  shades,  accord- 
ing to  the  concentration  of  the  bath ;  but  the  color  is  more 
lively  with  the  addition  of  alum.  Walnut  peels  also,  when 
ripe,  contain  a  dark  brown  dye-stuff,  which  communicates  a 
permanent  color  to  wool.  The  older  the  decoction  the  better. 
The  goods  are  dyed  in  a  lukewarm  bath,  and  need  no  mor- 
dant, though  they  become  brighter  with  alum.  Or  this  de- 
coction may  be  combined  with  the  madder  or  fustic  bath,  to 
give  varieties  of  shade.  This  dye  presents  a  vast  variety 
of  tints,  from  yellow  and  red  to  black  brown,  and  is  produced 
either  by  mixtures  of  red,  yellow,  and  blue,  or  of  yellow,  red, 
and  black.  We  shall  here  notice  only  the  principal  shades  : 
leaving  their  modifications  to  the  skill  of  the  dyer. 

1.  The  goods  should  be  boiled,  in  the  first  instance,  with 
one-eighth  their  weight  of  alum  and  sulpho-tartrate  of  iron : 
washed,  and  winced  through  the  madder  bath,  which  dyes 
the  portion  of  the  goods  imbued  with  the  alum,  red,  and  that 
with  the  salt  of  iron,  black  ;  the  tint  depending  upon  the  pro- 
portion of  each,  and  the  duration  of  the  madder  bath. 

2.  Brown,  nearly  similar  to  that  described,  may  be  pro- 
duced by  boiling  with  the  goods,  two  ounces  of  alum  and  one 
ounce  of  common  salt  to  the  pound,  and  then  dyeing  in  a 
bath  of  logwood  containing  either  sulpho-tartrate,  acetate,  or 
sulphate  of  iron.  Or  the  goods  may  be  boiled  with  alum  and 
tartar,  dyed  in  a  madder  bath,  and  then  run  through  a  black 
bath  of  iron  mordant  and  galls,  or  sumac.  Here  the  black 
tint  is  added  to  the  red  till  the  proper  hue  is  obtained.  The 
brown  may  be  produced  also  by  adding  iron  liquor  to  the 
madder  bath,  after  the  goods  have  been  dyed  in  it  with  alum 
and  tartar. 

3.  A  superior  brown,  of  the  foregoing  kind,  may  be  ob- 
tained by  boiling  every  pound  of  goods  with  2  ounces  of 
alum,  dyeing  in  cochineal,  then  changing  the  crimson  thus 

51 


402 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


given  into  brown,  by  turning  through  the  bath  after  acetate 
of  iron  has  been  added.  Instead  of  the  cochineal,  archil,  or 
cudbear,  with  a  little  galls  or  sumac,  may  be  used. 

4.  Woolen  goods  may  also  receive  a  light  blue  ground  from 
the  indigo  vat,  then  be  mordanted  with  alum,  washed,  and 
turned  through  a  madder  bath  till  the  wished-for  brown  be 
obtained.  For  the  deeper  shades,  galls  or  sumac  may  be 
added  to  the  paler  Brazil-wood,  with  more  or  less  iron  mor- 
dant. Instead  of  the  indigo  vat,  chemic-blue  may  be  em- 
ployed to  ground  before  dyeing  with  madder,  or  5  pounds  of 
madder,  1  pound  of  alum,  and  a  solution  of  one-tenth  of  a 
pound  of  indigo  in  sulphuric  acid,  may  be  used  with  the 
proper  quantity  of  water,  for  20  pounds  of  wool ;  for  dark 
shades,  some  iron  mordant  should  be  added. 

5.  Various  shades  from  mordore  and  cinnamon  to  chestnut- 
brown,  may  be  obtained,  by  first,  boiling  the  goods  with  alum 
and  tartar  ;  then  passing  through  a  madder  bath  ;  and  after- 
wards through  one  of  weld  and  fustic,  containing  more  or  less 
iron  mordant,  according  to  the  proportions  of  the  materials. 

6.  Bronze  colors  may  be  obtained  after  the  same  manner, 
from  the  union  of  olive  dyes  with  red.  The  process  is  as 
follows  : — For  25  pounds  of  cloth,  take  4  pounds  of  fustic 
chips,  boil  for  2  hours,  turn  the  cloth  in  this  bath  for  an  hour, 
heave  out,  and  drain.  Now  add  to  the  bath  from  4  to  6 
ounces  of  sulphate  of  iron,  1  pound  of  madder,  or  2  pounds 
of  sandal- wood ;  enter  the  cloth  and  work  till  the  desired 
shade  be  procured.  By  changing  the  proportions,  and  adding 
an  iron  mordant,  other  tints  may  be  produced. 

GRAY. — Gray,  is  the  union  of  the  three  primaries,  red, 
yellow,  and  blue,  by  which  they  neutralize  each  other,  and 
cannot  therefore  be  properly  termed  a  color. 

The  materials  used  in  dyeing  permanent  grays,  are  essen- 
tially the  tannic  and  gallic  acid  or  other  astringents,  with  the 
sulphate  or  acetate  of  iron.*  To  procure  an  ash-gray,  pro- 
ceed as  follows  : — 

1.  30  pounds  of  goods :  take  one  pound  of  galls,  i  pound 


*  See  chapter  It.  Part  III.,  and  chapter  I.  of  the  same  Part,  article  Iron. 


GRAY. 


403 


of  crude  tartar,  and  2\  pounds  of  copperas,  and  boil  in  from 
70  to  80  pounds  of  water.  When  well  boiled,  the  goods 
are  entered  and  kept  at  a  boiling  heat,  for  half  an  hour,  then 
taken  out. 

2.  The  bath  is  now  refreshed  with  cold  water,  the  cop- 
peras is  added,  and  as  soon  as  dissolved,  the  goods  are  en- 
tered, and  fully  dyed. 

3.  Or  proceed  thus.  For  36  pounds  of  wool  or  goods  ;  2 
pounds  of  tartar,  \  pound  of  galls,  3  pounds  of  sumac,  and  2 
pounds  of  copperas  are  taken.  The  tartar  being  dissolved  in 
80  pounds  of  boiling  water,  the  goods  are  entered  and  worked 
for  half  an  hour,  and  then  taken  out. 

4.  The  bath  being  filled  up  to  its  former  level  with  fresh 
water,  the  decoction  of  the  galls  and  sumac  is  poured  in,  and 
the  goods  entered  and  boiled  for  half  an  hour.  They  are 
then  taken  out,  while  the  copperas  is  being  added  and  dis- 
solved ;  after  which  they  are  again  entered,  and  dyed  with  a 
gentle  heat. 

5.  If  it  be  desirable  to  have  the  gray  of  a  yellow  cast,  then, 
instead  of  the  tartar,  its  weight  of  alum  is  to  be  taken ;  in- 
stead of  the  galls  one  pound  of  old  fustic ;  instead  of  the 
copperas  fths  of  a  pound  of  Saltzburg  vitriol,  which  con- 
sists in  22f  parts,  of  17  of  copperas,  and  5f  of  sulphate  of 
copper  ;  then  proceed  as  above  directed.  Or  the  goods  may 
first  be  stained  in  a  bath  of  fustic,  next  in  a  weak  bath  of 
galls  with  a  little  alum  ;  then  taken  out  and  a  little  common 
vitriol  added,  previously  dissolved  in  a  decoction  of  logwood ; 
and  in  this  bath  the  dyeing  is  completed. 

6.  Pearl  gray  is  produced  by  passing  the  goods  first 
through  a  decoction  of  sumac,  and  finishing  in  a  weak  bath 
of  weld,  containing  a  little  alum. 

7.  Mouse  gray  is  obtained,  with  the  same  proportions  as 
for  ash-gray  ;  a  small  quantity  of  alum  is  introduced. 

8.  Tawney  gray,  iron  gray,  and  slate  gray,  may  be  pro- 
duced by  giving  the  goods  a  ground  in  the  blue-vat.  They 
are  then  passed  through  a  bath  of  boiling  sumac  with  galls, 
and  through  the  same  bath,  at  a  lower  temperature  as  soon 


404 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


as  they  have  received  the  proper  quantity  of  the  solution  of 
iron.  * 

With  these  observations  on  gray,  and  the  modes  of  produ- 
cing the  various  shades,  we  shall  proceed  to  make  a  few  re- 
marks on  the  best  modes  of  producing  black. 

BLACK. — As  we  have  already,  when  speaking  of  cotton, 
treated  of  the  best  methods  of  obtaining  black  f  and  as  we 
shall  treat  of  this  color  in  the  next  part,  when  speaking  of 
silk,  we  need  not  enter  into  any  very  lengthy  details  here. 
The  proportions  of  the  substances  for  producing  this  color, 
are  so  various,  and  depend  so  much  on  the  local,  the  occa- 
sional, and  the  relative  dearness  and  cheapness  of  them,  thai 
one  process  may  be  expedient  at  one  time  and  place  while 
it  is  not  so  at  another.  But  it  should,  however,  be  remarked 
that  these  difficulties  are  not,  at  the  present  day,  of  so  serious 
a  character  as  they  were  a  few  years  ago.  The  French  method 
of  obtaining  black  on  woolen  goods  is  nearly  as  follows : — 

1.  The  goods  should  first  be  dyed  blue  ;  then  take  18  pounds  of  logwood,  and 
as  much  of  galls  for  100  pounds  of  goods.  The  logwood  (ground)  and  galls 
should  be  put  in  bags  and  boiled  for  12  hours.  One-third  of  this  liquor  is  to  be 
laded  into  another  boiler,  with  two  pounds  and  a  quarter  of  verdigris.  The  cloth 
is  soaked  in  this  for  two  hours  at  a  moderate  heat,  but  not  boiling.  It  must  be 
constantly  stirred  for  two  hours.  It  should  then  be  taken  out,  drained  and  cooled 
on  the  folding  board,  running  it  over  from  hand  to  hand  quickly. 

2.  To  the  liquor  in  the  bath,  now  add  another  third  of  the  decoction  of  logwood 
and  galls,  and  nine  pounds  of  copperas — lower  the  heat — let  the  copperas  dissolve, 
and  in  half  an  hour  enter  the  goods,  and  reel  briskly  for  one  hour.  They  should, 
now  be  taken  out,  drained,  and  cooled,  or  aired,  on  the  folding  board. 

3.  The  bags  in  the  gall  and  logwood  liquor,  are  now  well  pressed,  and  the  last 
third  of  the  decoction  turned  into  the  dyeing  bath,  to  which  also  about  twenty 
pounds  of  sumac  is  to  be  added.  Bring  the  liquor  to  a  boiling  heat,  and  let  it  so 
continue  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour ;  then  throw  in  two  pounds  and  a  quarter  of 
copperas,  and  when  dissolved  let  cool  a  little.  Now  enter  the  goods  and  reel 
briskly  for  an  hour,  drain,  and  air  on  the  folding  board,  then  rinse  in  clear  water ; 
after  which  let  air  for  some  time. 

4.  Raise  the  heat  of  the  bath  nearly  to  ebullition ;  enter  the  goods  and  reel  for 
an  hour ;  drain,  cool,  and  air,  wash  in  the  river  until  the  water  comes  off  colorless. 

5.  A  bath  of  weld  is  now  prepared,  and  which  should  only  be  permitted  to  boil 
for  a  few  minutes ;  cool  with  a  little  cold  water ;  enter  the  goods  and  reel  for  an 
hour;  drain,  cool,  and  wash. 

On  the  foregoing  process  it  may  be  observed,  that  if  the 


*  See  chapters  I.  II.  and  IX.,  Part  III.,  and  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article  Logwood. 


kober's  mordant. 


405 


cloth  be  dyed  a  good  blue  first,  the  proportions  of  ingredients 
are  perhaps  rather  large.  Great  advantage  also  is  to  be  found 
in  airing  well  between  each  dipping.  Indeed  black  is  never 
perfect  until  well  exposed  to  the  air.  Lewis  and  Berthollet, 
are  of  opinion  that  the  last  working  in  the  weld  liquor  is  su- 
perfluous ;  and  in  this  they  are,  perhaps,  right.  The  propor- 
tion of  logwood  might  be  a  little  increased  at  the  expense  of 
the  other  ingredients  ;  because  the  soft  and  velvety  lustre  of 
the  color  on  the  goods,  depends  more  on  the  logwood  than  on 
the  galls  and  sumac,  notwithstanding  that  these  last  afford  a 
more  permanent  dye.  Mr.  Cooper  is  of  opinion  that  the  last 
working  should  be  in  the  liquor  with  a  small  quantity  of  Gal- 
lipoli  oil,  to  give  the  soft  feel  to  the  cloth,  which,  he  says,  is 
so  great  a  recommendation  ;  always  premising  an  effectual 
scouring.* 

When  fine  cloth  is  to  be  dyed  black,  care  must  be  taken 
not  to  let  it  hang  on  the  reel.  The  cloth  must  be  thrown 
off  the  instant  the  last  comes  up  ;  otherwise  its  own  weight 
when  wet  and  hot  would  fill  it  with  wrinkles  that  could  never 
be  removed.  The  same  precaution  must  be  taken  when  the 
cloth  is  on  the  floor,  to  draw  it  between  two  men  over  a  roller 
by  the  lists  ;  each  taking  hold  of  a  selvige  with  the  left  hand. 
This  operation  must  be  continued  till  the  goods  become  cold, 
and  before  which  they  must  not  be  returned  to  the  bath. 

Some  dyers  proceed  thus  to  obtain  black : — Take  6  ounces  of  logwood,  as  much 
sumac,  and  2  ounces  of  fustic  for  each  pound  of  goods ;  boil  these  for  two  hours ; 
then  a  little  cold  water  is  thrown  in  to  cool  down,  and  the  goods  entered  and 
reeled  for  two  hours.  They  are  now  taken  out,  when  three  ounces  and  a  half  of 
copperas  and  half  an  ounce  of  verdigris,  are  to  be  added  to  the  pound  of  goods. 
When  these  are  dissolved,  stir  up  and  enter ;  work  for  half  an  hour,  rather  under 
boiling  heat.  The  goods  are  now  taken  out,  cooled,  and  well  aired.  These  ope- 
rations are  to  be  repeated  two  or  three  times  more ;  then  drain,  cool,  air,  and  wash. 

KOBER'S  MORDANT  FOR  WOOL.— In  chapter  III. 
of  this  Part,  article  Kobefs  Improved  Woad  Vat,  we  referred 
to  a  mode  of  fixing  color  on  wool,  patented  in  England,  in 
March,  1840,  by  Mr.  Charles  Kober,  of  Leeds.  We  shall 
now  describe  this  part  of  Mr.  Kober's  improvements. 

*  Cooper  on  Dyeing,  p.  89. 


406  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

The  improvement  consists  in  the  use  of  bichromate  of 
potash,  as  a  medium  for  uniting  the  coloring  ingredients,  used 
in  dyeing,  with  the  wool,  u  whereby"  he  is,  he  says,  "  enabled 
to  obtain  a  much  faster,  brighter,  and  cheaper  color,  than  by 
the  ordinary  mordants  used,  such  as  sulphate  of  iron,  and 
sulphate  of  alumina,  and  potash,  or,  as  they  are  commonly 
called,  copperas  and  alum."  Again,  "In  consequence,"  he 
says,  "  of  the  great  affinity  of  bichromate  of  potash  for  wool, 
as  well  as  for  the  coloring  ingredients,  a  comparatively  small 
quantity  will  fix  the  color ;  that  is  to  say,  one  pound  of 
bichromate  of  potash  can  be  used  instead  of  from  three  to 
four  pounds  of  alum,  or  copperas  ;  besides  which,  the  color 
produced  by  the  use  of  bichromate  of  potash  is  fast  in  alka- 
lies and  air,  and  better  resists  the  operations  of  scouring  and 
the  milling  process  ;  and  less  coloring  ingredients  are  used 
than  by  the  ordinary  mode,  because  the  color  produced  there- 
by, being  faster,  no  loss  of  color  will  take  place  when  scouring 
the  cloth  with  soap  ;  and  the  fibres  of  the  wool,  in  the  dye- 
ing of  tvhich  bichromate  of  potash  is  employed,  will  not  be 
injured,  as  they  have  hitherto  been,  by  the  acids  contained 
in  alum  or  copperas  ;  and,  on  the  contrary,  the  cloth  will  be 
softer,  and  easier  to  be  scribbled  and  milled  ;  and,  conse- 
quently, the  same  quantity  of  wool  will  produce  a  greater 
and  better  quantity  and  quality  of  cloth  than  by  the  method 
usually  employed.  The  ordinary  coloring  ingredients  are 
employed  in  conjunction  with  the  bichromate  of  potash,  and 
as  every  different  shade  and  color  requires  a  different  propor- 
tion of  ingredients,  and  the  dye- wares  differ  so  much  in  qual- 
ity, that  sometimes  a  double  quantity  of  them  is  required,  it 
is  impossible  to  state  the  different  proportions  in  which  the 
bichromate  should  be  used  with  them,  the  requisite  amount 
varying  according  to  the  quantity  of  ingredients  to  be  fixed 
on  the  wool."  Mr.  Kober,  however,  says,  that  he  generally 
employs  three  pounds  of  bichromate  of  potash  for  preparing 
one  hundred  pounds  of  scoured  wool ;  and  he  sometimes  adds 
two  pounds  of  argal  or  tartar.  In  the  liquor,  thus  produced, 
the  wool  is  boiled  for  one  hour  and  a  half ;  and  on  the  next 


kober's  mordant. 


407 


day  the  color  is  filled  up  with  as  much  of  the  coloring  ingre- 
dients as  the  desired  shade  may  require. 

Mr.  Kober  claims  as  new  "  the  use  of  bichromate  of  pot- 
ash as  a  substitute  for  copperas,  and  alum,  and  other  mor- 
dants."* This  patent  contains  two  other  claims,  the  first  of 
which  consists  in  the  use  of  soda  and  bran  for  dissolving  the 
indigo  in  the  vats  for  dyeing  blue,  whereby,  he  says,  the  in- 
digo is  better  fixed  in  the  wool,  and  at  less  expense  than  is  in- 
curred by  the  use  of  woad,  madder,  and  bran.t  The  sec- 
ond claim  is  to  the  dyeing  of  the  wool  blue,  then  manu- 
facturing it  into  cloth  and  then  adding  the  yellow  ingre- 
dients, by  which,  he  says,  a  permanent  green  color  may  be 
obtained. — (See  chapter  III.  of  this  Part,  article  Green.) 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III. 

t  See  chapter  III.  of  this  Part,  article  Kober's  Improved  Woad  Vat. 


( 


PART  FIFTH. 

DYE1TO  PBOCESSES  COITIIUED. 


CHAPTER  I. 
OF  BLACK,  GRAY,  AND  BROWN. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK  ON  SILK. 

Difference  between  Wool  and  Silk  Dyeing — What  constitutes  this  difference — 
Cleansing  the  Silk  from  Gum — Galling — General  Remarks  on  these  operations 
— Processes  of  Dyeing  Black  on  Silk,  English,  French,  German,  and  Ameri- 
can— Feather -Dyeing — Variety  of  Colors — Grays — Nut,  Thorn,  Black,  Iron 
Grays,  &c. — Brown — Various  shades  of  Brown. 

In  this  Part  of  the  work,  we  shall  give  the  principal  colors 
and  their  compounds,  in  reverse  order.  In  Parts  III.  and  IV., 
we  commenced  by  giving  the  primary  colors,  red,  yellow,  and 
blue,  and  then  the  secondaries,  tertiaries,  &c,  and  under  each 
color,  shades  making  the  nearest  approach  to  that  particular 
color.    We  shall  now,  therefore,  commence  by  giving  black. 

The  coloring  matters  used  in  dyeing  wool,  are  employed 
also  to  dye  silk:  but  the  method  of  managing  the  dyeing 
drugs  upon  silk  is  very  different.  For  many  colors,  a  heat 
above  100°  F.  must  not  be  employed.  The  necessary  dex- 
terity in  handling  silk  goods,  can  only  be  acquired  by  long 
apprenticeship  ;  but  as  to  the  mere  dyeing,  that  can  soon  be 
taught  to  any  one  accustomed  to  dye  woolen  goods.  Indeed 
we  never  knew  a  good  silk  dyer  who  had  not  been  a  woolen 
dyer ;  a  superior  workman  should  be  both. 


BLACK. 


409 


According  to  the  observations  of  Lewis,  the  processes  that 
are  employed  for  wool,  yield  only  a  rusty  black  to  silk ;  and 
cotton  is  hardly  dyed  by  the  processes  proper  for  wool  and 
silk.  The  truth  of  these  observations  has  been  fully  illus- 
trated in  the  foregoing  sections  of  this  work,  which  precludes 
the  necessity  of  enlarging  much  upon  the  subject  here. 
1.  Wool  has  a  great  tendency  to  combine  with  coloring  sub- 
stances ;  but  its  physical  nature  requires  its  combinations  to 
be  made  in  general  at  a  high  temperature.  The  combination 
of  the  black  molecules  may  therefore  be  directly  effected  in  a 
bath,  in  proportion  as  they  form  ;  and  if  the  operation  be  pro- 
longed by  subdividing  it,  it  is  only  with  the  view  of  changing 
the  necessary  oxidizement  of  the  sulphate,  and  augmenting 
that  of  the  coloring  particles  themselves.  Silk  has  little  dis- 
position to  unite  with  the  black  particles.  It  seems  to  be 
merely  by  the  agency  of  the  tannin  (see  Tannin  and  Gallic 
Acid,  chapter  II.,  Part  III.),  with  which  it  is  previously  im- 
pregnated, that  these  particles  can  fix  themselves  on  it,  espe- 
cially after  it  has  been  scoured.  For  this  reason,  silk  baths 
should  be  old,  and  have  the  coloring  particles  accumulated  in 
them,  but  so  feebly  suspended  as  to  yield  to  a  weak  affinity. 
Their  precipitation  is  counteracted  by  the  addition  of  gum,  or 
other  mucilaginous  substances.  The  obstacle  which  might 
arise  from  the  sulphuric  acid  set  at  liberty,  is  destroyed  by  iron 
filings,  or  other  basis.  Thus,  baths  of  a  very  different  com- 
position, but  with  the  essential  condition  of  age,  may  be  proper 
for  giving  this  color  to  silk. 

Silk  naturally  contains  a  substance  called  gum,  which 
gives  it  the  stiffness  and  elasticity  peculiar  to  it  in  its  native 
state ;  but  this  adds  nothing  to  the  strength  of  the  silk,  which 
is  then  styled  raw  ;  it  rather  renders  it,  indeed,  more  apt  to 
wear  out  by  the  stiffness  which  it  communicates  ;  and  al- 
though raw  silk  more  readily  takes  a  black  color,  yet  the 
black  is  not  so  perfect  in  intensity,  nor  does  it  so  well  resist 
the  re-agents  capable  of  dissolving  the  coloring  particles,  as 
silk  which  is  scoured  or  deprived  of  its  gum.* 


*  See  Silk  Bleaching,  Scouring,  &c.,  chapter  III.,  Part  II. 

52 


410 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Galling. — For  the  galling,  galls  equal  to  three-fourths 
of  the  weight  of  the  silk  are  boiled  for  three  or  four  hours  ; 
but  on  account  of  the  price  of  Aleppo  galls,  more  or  less  of 
the  white  gall-nuts,  or  of  even  an  inferior  kind  called  galon, 
are  used.  The  proportion  commonly  employed  at  Paris  is 
two  parts  of  Aleppo  galls  to  from  eight  to  ten  parts  of  galon. 
After  the  boiling,  the  galls  are  allowed  to  settle  for  two  hours. 
The  silk  is  then  plunged  into  the  bath,  and  left  in  it  from 
twelve  to  thirty-six  hours,  after  which  it  is  taken  out  and 
washed  in  the  river.* 

Silk  is  capable  of  combining  with  quantities,  more  or  less 
considerable,  of  the  astringent  principle  ;  whence  results  a  con- 
siderable increase  of  weight,  not  only  from  the  weight  of  the 
astringent  principle,  but  also  from  that  of  the  coloring  par- 
ticles, which  subsequently  fix  themselves  in  proportion  to  the 
quantity  of  the  astringent  principle  which  had  entered  into 
combination.  Consequently  the  processes  are  varied  accord- 
ing to  the  degree  of  weight  which  it  is  wished  to  communi- 
cate to  the  silk ;  a  circumstance  requiring  some  illustration. 
Silk  loses  nearly  a  fourth  of  its  weight  by  a  thorough  boiling, 
and  it  resumes,  in  the  light  black  dye,  one  half  of  this  loss ; 
but  in  the  heavy  black  dye,  it  takes  sometimes  upwards  of  a 
fifth  more  than  its  primitive  weight ;  a  surcharge  injurious  to 
the  beauty  of  the  black,  and  the  durability  of  the  goods.  The 
surcharged  kind  is  denominated  English  black,  because  it  is 
pretended  that  it  was  first  practiced  in  England.f  Since 
silk  dyed  with  a  great  surcharge  has  not  a  beautiful  black, 
it  is  usually  destined  for  weft,  and  is  blended  with  a  warp 
dyed  of  a  fine  black. 


*  To  cleanse  silk  intended  for  black,  it  is  usually  boiled  four  or  five  hours  with 
one-fifth  of  its  weight  of  white  soap,  after  which  it  is  carefully  beetled  and  washed. 

t  The  commerce  of  silk  goods  is  carried  on  in  two  ways ;  they  are  sold  either 
by  the  weight,  or  by  the  surface,  that  is,  by  measure.  Thus,  says  Berthollet,  the 
trade  of  Tours  was  formerly  distinguished  from  that  of  Lyons ;  the  silks  of  the 
former  being  sold  by  weight,  those  of  the  latter,  by  measure.  It  was  therefore 
their  interest  to  surcharge  the  weight  at  Tours,  and,  on  the  contrary,  to  be  sparing 
of  the  dyeing  ingredients  at  Lyons ;  whence  came  the  distinction  of  light  black 
and  heavy  black.  At  present,  both  methods  of  dyeing  are  practiced  at  Lyons,  the 
two  modes  of  sale  having  been  adopted  there. 


BLACK. 


411 


The  peculiarity  of  the  process  for  obtaining  the  heavy 
black,  consists  in  leaving  the  silk  longer  in  the  gall  liquor,  in 
repeating  the  galling,  in  passing  the  silk  a  greater  number  of 
times  through  the  dye,  and  even  letting  it  lie  in  it  for  some 
time.  The  first  galling  is  usually  made  with  galls  which 
have  served  for  a  preceding  operation,  and  fresh  galls  are 
employed  for  the  second.  But  these  methods  would  not  be 
sufficient  for  giving  a  great  surcharge,  such  as  is  found  in 
what  is  called  the  English  black.  To  give  it  this  weight, 
the  silk  is  galled  without  being  ungummed  ;  and,  on  coming 
out  of  the  galls,  it  is  rendered  supple  by  being  worked  on  the 
jack  and  pin. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLACK.— For  the  dyeing 
of  raw  silk  black,  it  is  galled  in  the  cold,  with  the  bath  of 
galls  which  has  already  served  for  the  black  of  boiled  silk. 
For  this  purpose,  silk,  in  its  native  yellow  color,  is  made 
choice  of.  It  should  be  remarked,  that  when  it  is  desired  to 
preserve  a  portion  of  the  gum  of  the  silk,  which  is  afterwards 
made  flexible,  the  galling  is  given  with  a  hot  bath  of  galls 
in  the  ordinary  manner.  But  here,  where  the  whole  gum 
of  the  silk,  and  its  concomitant  elasticity,  are  to  be  pre- 
served, the  galling  is  made  in  the  cold.  If  the  infusion  of 
galls  be  weak,  the  silk  is  left  in  it  for  several  days.*  Silk 
thus  prepared  and  washed  takes  the  black  dye  very  easily, 
and  the  rinsing  in  a  little  water,  to  which  sulphate  of  iron 
may  be  added,  is  sufficient  to  give  it.  The  dye  is  made  in 
the  cold ;  but,  according  to  the  greater  or  less  strength  of  the 
rinsings,  it  requires  more  or  less  time.  Occasionally  three  or 
four  days  are  necessary ;  after  which  it  is  washed,  beetled 
once  or  twice,  and  then  dried,  without  wringing. 


*  Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  11.  If  heavy  black  is  wanted,  a  third  of  the 
silk  is  put  upon  rods,  and  three  times  returned  into  the  black  ground ;  it  is  after- 
wards wrung  with  the  pin  over  the  copper;  this  is  done  by  giving  it  three  twists;  in 
this  manner  three  hanks  maybe  wrung  at  once;  because  it  should  be  done  gently^ 
and  only  to  drain ;  it  is  again  put  upon  rods,  and  suspended  between  two  poles 
to  air.  While  the  first  silk  is  airing,  the  second  third  part  is  dipped  in  the  same 
manner,  and  afterwards  the  third  portion,  always  in  the  same  manner.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  while  the  silk  is  on  the  rods,  it  should  be  turned  from  time  to 


412 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Berthollet  gives  us  the  following  account,  with  emendations, 
of  Macquer's  process,  for  dyeing  112  pounds  of  silk : — 

1.  22  lbs.  of  Aleppo  galls  are  boiled  for  two  hours  in  a  suf- 
ficient quantity  of  water.  32  lbs.  of  copperas,  13  lbs.  of  iron 
filings  liquor,  and  22  lbs.  of  country  gum,  are  now  put  into  a 
kind  of  two-handled  cullender,  pierced  everywhere  with  holes. 
This  kettle  is  suspended  by  two  rods  in  the  boiler,  so  as  not 
to  reach  the  bottom.  The  gum  is  left  to  dissolve  for  about 
an  hour,  stirring  it  from  time  to  time.  If,  after  this  time, 
some  gum  remains  in  the  kettle,  it  is  a  proof  that  the  bath, 
which  contains  two  hogsheads,  has  taken  as  much  of  it  as  is 
necessary.  If,  on  the .  contrary,  the  whole  gum  is  dissolved, 
from  1  to  4  lbs.  more  may  be  added.  This  cullender  is  left 
constantly  suspended  in  the  boiler,  from  which  it  is  re- 
moved only  when  the  dyeing  is  going  on  ;  and  thereafter  it  is 
replaced.  During  all  these  operations  the  boiler  must  be  kept 
hot,  but  without  boiling. 

2.  The  galling  of  the  silk  is  performed  with  one-third  of 
Aleppo  galls.  The  silk  is  left  in  it  for  six  hours  the  first  time, 
then  for  twelve  hours.* 

Astringents  differ  from  one  another  as  to  the  quantity  of 
the  principle  which  enters  into  combination  with  the  oxide  of 
iron.  Hence  the  proportion  of  the  sulphate,  or  of  any  other 
salt  of  iron,  and  that  of  the  astringents,  should  vary  accord- 
ing to  the  astringents  made  use  of,  and  according  to  their  re- 
spective quantities.  Gall-nut  is  the  substance  which  contains 
most  astringent ;  sumac,  which  seems  second  to  it  in  this  re- 
spect, throws  down  (decomposes),  however,  only  half  as  much 
as  sulphate  of  iron.  The  most  suitable  proportion  of  sulphate 
of  iron  appears  to  be  that  which  corresponds  to  the  quantity  of 
the  astringent  matter,  so  that  the  whole  iron  precipitable  by 


time  to  give  it  air.  When  the  last  third  part  is  wrung,  the  first  part  is  put  in,  and 
then  the  two  others  successively,  three  times,  always  airing  each  time.  This  is 
commonly  called  giving  the  three  wrings,  and  these  three  wrings  are  called  one  fire 
or  heating.    The  light  blacks  should  also  have  three  wrings  to  one  fire. 

*  Lewis  states  that  he  has  repeated  this  process  of  Macquer  in  the  small  way  ; 
and  that  by  adding  copperas  progressively,  and  repeating  the  immersions  of  the 
silk  a  great  number  of  times,  he  eventually  obtained  a  fine  black. 


BLACK. 


413 


the  astringent  may  be  thrown  down,  and  the  whole  astringent 
may  be  taken  up  in  combination  with  the  iron.  As  it  is  not 
possible,  however,  to  arrive  at  such  precision,  it  is  better  that 
the  sulphate  of  iron  should  predominate,  because  the  astrin- 
gent, when  in  excess,  counteracts  the  precipitation  of  the 
black  coloring  particles,  and  has  the  property  of  even  dis 
solving  them. 

The  action  of  astringents  upon  the  goods  is  such,  that  if  a 
black  pattern  be  boiled  with  gall-nuts,  it  is  reducible  to  gray.* 
The  observation  of  Lewis  may  thence  be  explained.  If  cloth 
be  turned  several  times  through  the  coloring  bath,  after  it  has 
taken  a  good  black  color,  instead  of  acquiring  more  body,  it 
is  weakened,  and  becomes  brownish.  Too  considerable  a 
quantity  of  the  ingredients  produces  the  same  effect ;  to  which 
the  sulphuric  acid,  set  at  liberty  by  the  precipitation  of  the 
oxide  of  iron,  contributes.!  It  is  merely  the  highly  oxidized 
sulphate  which  is  decomposed  by  the  astringent ;  whence  it 
appears  that  the  sulphate  will  produce  a  different  effect  ac- 
cording to  its  state  of  oxidizement,  and  call  for  other  propor- 
tions. Some  advise,  therefore,  to  follow  the  method  of  Proust, 
employing  it  in  the  oxidized  state  ;  but  in  this  case  it  is  only 
partially  decomposed,  and  another  part  is  brought,  by  the 
action  of  the  astringent,  into  the  lower  degree  of  oxidize- 
ment. 

The  mixture  of  logwood  with  astringents,  says  Berthollet, 
contributes  to  the  beauty  of  the  black  in  a  two-fold  way.  It 
produces  molecules  of  a  hue  different  from  what  the  astrin- 
gents do,  and  particularly  blue  molecules,  with  the  oxide  of 
copper,  (verdigris)  commonly  employed  in  the  black  dyes ; 
which  appears  to  be  more  useful,  the  more  acetate  the  verdi- 
gris made  use  of  contains. 

M.  D' Angles  asserts,  that  if  the  silk  be  previously  dyed  blue 
in  the  indigo  vat,  it  will  only  take  a  mealy  kind  of  black 
with  the  usual  black  dye;  but  if  it  first  receives  a  blue 
ground  with  logwood  and  verdigris,  a  full  velvety  black  is 


Berthollet  on  Dyeing,  vol.  II.  p.  22.     t  See  chapters  I.,  II.,  and  IX.  Part  III. 


414 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


obtained.  He  says  also,  that  the  walnut  rind  softens  the 
silk. 

On  the  whole,  says  Mr.  Cooper,  it  appears  to  me  that  the 
best  process  for  black  on  silk  is,  to  give  the  silk  a  ground  of 
walnut  rind  :  then  a  deep  logwood  blue,  which  can  be  done 
by  adding  the  verdigris  to  the  logwood  decoction  and  dissolv- 
ing it  therein  ;  then  the  black  dye,  wherein  the  galls  are  in 
proportion  to  the  copperas  as  four  to  one :  this  will  take  three 
separate  immersions  at  least  in  the  black  dye,  with  subsequent 
airings  and  washings  :  always  recollecting  that  if  the  goods 
of  whatever  kind  are  not  aired  out  of  the  black  dye,  that 
black  dye  will  be  in  part  washed  out. 

DYEING  FEATHERS  BLACK,  <fcc— For  20  pounds  of 
feathers,  a  strong  decoction  is  made  of  25  pounds  of  logwood 
in  a  pi$>per  quantity  of  water.  After  boiling  it  for  6  hours, 
the  wood  is  taken  out,  3  pounds  of  copperas  are  thrown  in ; 
and,  after  continuing  the  ebullition  for  15  or  20  minutes,  the 
copper  is  taken  from  the  fire.  The  feathers  are  then  im- 
mersed, by  handfuls,  thoroughly  soaked,  and  worked  about ; 
and  left  in  for  two  or  three  days.  They  are  next  cleansed 
in  a  very  weak  alkaline  ley,  and  soaped  three  times.  When 
they  feel  very  soft  to  the  touch,  they  must  be  rinsed  in  cold 
water,  and  dried.  White  feathers  are  very  difficult  to  dye  a 
beautiful  black.  The  acetate  of  iron  is  said  to  answer  better 
than  the  sulphate,  as  a  mordant.*  For  dyeing  other  colors, 
the  feathers  should  be  previously  well  bleached  by  the  action 
of  the  sun  and  the  dew ;  the  end  of  the  tube  being  cut  sharp 
like  a  toothpick,  and  the  feathers  being  planted  singly  in  the 
grass.  After  fifteen  days'  exposure,  they  are  cleared  with 
soap.  The  following  named  colors  may  be  produced  by 
means  of  the  coloring  substances,  &c,  given  opposite  to 
each : — 

1.  Deep  red,  by  a  hot  solution  of  Brazil-wood,  after  aluming  the  feathers. 

2.  Crimson. — Give  the  feathers  red  as  above,  and  then  pass  them  through  a 
bath  of  cudbear. 


*  See  chapter  L  Part  III.,  article  Iron,  and  chapter  IX.  of  the  same  Part,  article 
Processes  of  Dyeing  Black. 


GRAY  AND  BROWN. 


415 


3.  Prune  de  Monsieur. — Give  deep  red,  as  for  red  or  crimson,  as  above,  and 
then  pass  them  through  an  alkaline  bath. 

4.  Rose  color  or  Pink,  may  be  given  with  safflower  and  lemon  juice. 

5.  Yellow. — Alum  the  feathers  and  then  pass  them  through  turmeric  or  weld. 
By  a  proper  mixture  of  these  colors  or  dyes,  of  course  various  other  tints  may  be 
obtained. 

GRAY. —  Of  Nat  Grays,  Thorn  Grays,  Black ,  andiron 
Grays.  All  these  colors,  except  black  gray,  are  produced 
without  aluming.  The  silk  being  washed  from  the  soap, 
beetled,  and  wrung  on  the  pin.  A  liquor  is  now  made  of 
(fustet)  young  fustic,  logwood,  archil,  and  copperas.  The 
fustet  gives  the  ground,  archil  the  red,  logwood  darkens,  and 
the  copperas  softens  all  these  colors,  turns  them  gray,  and  at 
the  same  time  serves  instead  of  alum  to  extract  the  several 
colors.  As  there  is  an  infinite  variety  of  grays  without  any 
positive  names  and  produced  by  the  same  methods,  it  would 
be  endless  to  enter  into  a  detail  that  would  be  to  no  practical 
purpose. 

Suffice  it  to  remark,  that  in  producing  a  reddish  gray,  the 
archil  should  predominate :  for  those  more  gray,  the  log- 
wood ;  and  for  those  still  more  rusty  and  rather  greenish, 
fustic.  In  general,  when  obliged  to  complete  the  color  with 
logwood  it  should  be  used  rather  sparingly,  because  it  is  apt, 
in  drying,  to  darken  too  much,  differing  in  this  particular 
from  all  other  colors.  Grays  are  also  made,  as  already 
stated,*  by  grounding  them  in  a  very  weak  or  dilute  black 
dye.  The  different  shades  of  gray  can  be  given  by  additions 
to  this  ground :  thus,  for  pearl  gray,  a  very  dilute  logwood 
blue,  on  the  black  gray :  for  dove,  a  very  slight  tinge  of  red 
on  the  black  gray,  and  so  on. 

BROWN. — The  processes  by  which  the  gradations  of 
black  are  obtained  that  form  the  different  shades  of  gray, 
have  been  already  described.t  It  has  been  shown,  that  dis- 
similar shades  might  be  blended  with  them,  so  as  to  cause 


*  See  chapters  I.,  II.,  and  IX.,  Part  III.,  and  chapter  IV.  Part  IV. 

t  See  chapter  IX.  Part  III.,  article  Catechue  Brown;  see  also  chapter  IV.  Part 
IV.,  article  Drown,  and  the  articles  Camwood,  Gatechue,  and  Logwood,  chapter 
III.  Part  I. 


416 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


them  to  incline  towards  certain  colors ;  but  the  black  is  often 
employed  for  certain  colors  which  are  to  remain  predominant, 
and  which  should  be  merely  browned.  At  the  same  time, 
they  become  more  durable. 

BRONZE. — Silk  may  be  dyed  a  bronze  color  by  the 
union  of  olive  dyes  with  red.  For  this  purpose,  three  differ- 
ent baths  should  be  employed;  one  for  logwood,  one  for 
Brazil-wood,  and  one  for  fustic.  The  silk,  after  being  boiled 
with  soap,  is  alumed,  and  then  dyed  in  a  bath  compounded 
of  tfietP  three  decoctions,  mixed  in  the  requisite  proportions. 


CHAPTER  II, 


VIOLET,  PURPLE,  GREEN,  AND  ORANGE. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Violets,  Lilacs,  Pigeon-necks,  Mallows,  &c. — Purple,  Gilly- 
flower, Grisdeline,  and  Peach-blossom — Green — Emerald,  Landscape,  Willow, 
Bottle-greens,  &c. — Olive — Russet-olive — Aurora,  Orange,  &c. 

VIOLET. — From  the  mixture  of  red  and  blue,  are  ob- 
tained violet,  purple,  dove-color,  amaranth,  lilac,*  and  a  great 
many  other  shades,  determined  by  the  nature  of  the  substan- 
ces whose  red  color  is  combined  with  the  blue  color,  of  which 
one  becomes  more  or  less  predominant  over  the  other,  accord- 
ing to  the  proportions  of  the  ingredients,  and  other  circum- 
stances of  the  process. 

Goods  dyed  scarlet,  take,  according  to  the  observation  of 
Hellot,  an  unequal  color,  when  blue  is  to  be  united  with  it. 
It  is  proper,  therefore,  to  begin  with  the  blue  ground,  which, 
even  for  violet  and  purple,  should  not  be  deeper  than  the  shade 
denominated  sky-blue.  A  preparation  is  given  with  alum, 
mixed  with  two-fifths  of  tartar;  the  goods  are  next  passed 
through  a  bath  composed  of  nearly  two-thirds  as  much  cochi- 
neal as  for  scarlet,  to  which  tartar  is  always  added.t 

For  fine  violet,  Berthollet  recommends  to  give  the  cochineal 
dye  first,  and  then  the  blue  in  the  vat.  The  silk  is  prepared 
and  receives  the  cochineal  as  for  crimson, — with  this  differ 


*  Lilacs,  pigeon-necks,  mallows,  &c.,  are  passed  usually  through  the  preparation 
that  has  served  for  violet,  with  the  addition  of  alum  and  tartar.  The  blue  ground 
is  proportioned  to  the  shade  wanted,  as  well  as  the  quantity  of  cochineal.  For 
some  reddish  shades,  as  peach-blossom,  a  little  solution  of  tin  is  added.  It  may  be 
remarked,  that  although  the  quantity  of  cochineal  is  diminished  when  a  light  shade 
is  wished  for,  yet  the  quantity  of  tartar  is  not,  so  that  its  relative  proportion  to  the 
cochineal  is  greater,  the  lighter  the  color  is  to  be. 

t  Violet  and  purple  are  often  dyed  in  the  spent  scarlet  bath,  by  adding  the  quan- 
tities of  cochineal  and  tartar  deemed  necessary.  The  operation  is  conducted  in  the 
same  manner  as  for  scarlet. 

53 


418  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ence,  that  neither  tartar  nor  solution  of  tin,  which  serve  to 
heighten  the  color,  is  put  into  the  bath.  More  or  less  cochi- 
neal is  introduced,  according  to  the  intensity  of  the  shade 
wanted. 

To  give  mere  strength  and  beauty  to  the  violet,*  it  is  usu- 
ally passed  through  the  archil  bath ;  and  this  practice,  fre- 
quently abused,  is  indispensable  for  the  light  shades,  because 
the  color  would  otherwise  be  too  dull. 

Common  or  fugitive  violets,  are  given  to  silk  in  various 
ways.  The  most  beautiful,  and  those  most  in  use,  are  pre- 
pared with  archil.  The  strength  of  the  archil  bath  is  propor- 
tioned to  the  color  wished  for.  Less  blue,  or  less  archil,  is 
given,  according  as  the  violet  is  wished  to  incline  to  red  or  to 
blue.f 

PURPLE. — The  only  difference  between  the  violet  and 
purple  dyes,  is,  that  for  purple  a  lighter  blue  ground  is  given, 
and  a  greater  proportion  of  cochineal  is  employed.  For  light 
shades  of  purple,  cold  water  is  had  recourse  to  into  which  a  * 
little  of  the  blue  vat  is  put,  because  they  would  take  too 
much  blue  in  the  vat  itself,  however  weak  it  may  be.  The 
light  shades  of  this  color,  such  as  pink  and  peach-blossom, 


*  Beautiful  violets  may  be  produced  on  silk  by  means  of  a  solution  of  indigo, 
or  chemic ;  but  they  have  little  permanence,  and  become  reddish,  because  the  color 
of  indigo  fades  first. 

t  A  particular  circumstance  has  led  us,  says  a  recent  writer  (M.  Lebaillif)  in  the 
Annates  de  Chimie,  to  discover  the  coloring  property  possessed  by  a  solution  of 
mercury  in  nitric  acid,  made  with  a  gentle  heat,  when  put  in  contact  with  silk  at 
a  temperature  of  from  86°  to  104°  F.  Experiments,  says  this  author,  have  shown 
that  these  substances  are  capable  of  giving  an  amaranth  color,  more  or  less  deep, 
to  silk.  The  silk  should  be  entered  at  a  temperature  of  112°  or  113°  P.,  and 
worked  for  ten  or  fifteen  minutes  in  nitric  solution  of  mercury.  It  should  then  be 
worked,  at  a  temperature  of  70°  F.,  in  two  parts  of  nitric  acid.  This  solution  is 
afterwards  exposed  to  a  boiling  heat",  in  order  to  convert  a  part  of  the  proto-nitrate 
of  mercury  into  deuto-nitrate.  To  use  this  solution  for  the  purposes  of  dyeing, 
dilute  it  with  its  bulk  of  water,  and  dip  in  the  silk  at  the  temperature  above  indi- 
cated. In  the  different  operations,  says  M.  Lebaillif,  that  we  have  performed,  we 
have  given  silk  a  sufficiently  permanent  amaranth  red  color,  which  appeared  to  re- 
sist long  enough  the  action  of  light,  and  which  is  not  altered  in  the  cold,  either  by 
alkaline  solutions,  or  by  sulphuric  acid  diluted  with  water. 


GREEN. 


419 


are  made  in  the  same  manner,  with  a  diminution  of  the  pro- 
portion of  cochineal.* 

GREEN. — As  the  best  methods  of  dyeing  green,  on  cotton 
and  wool,  have  been  described  in  Parts  III.  and  IV.  it  is  not 
necessary  that  we  should  extend  the  subject  here  to  any  very 
considerable  length,  at  least,  to  no  greater  extent  than  is 
necessary  to  show  the  application  of  the  color  as  applied  to 
silk. 

As  has  been  already  stated,  when  treating  of  this  color, 
green  is  composed  of  blue  and  yellow,  and  is  with  difficulty 
produced  on  silk,  because  the  blue  vat  is  liable  to  spot,  an  in- 
convenience more  perceptible  in  green  than  in  blue.  Silk  in- 
tended for  green,  is  boiled  as  for  ordinary  colors  ;  for  light 
shades,  however,  it  should  be  boiled  thoroughly  as  for  blue. 
Silk  is  not  first  dyed  blue  like  woolen  cloth  or  goods  ;  but 
after  a  strong  aluming,  it  is  washed  slightly  in  the  river,  and 
distributed  into  small  hanks,  that  it  may  take  the  dye  equally : 
after  which  it  is  turned  carefully  round  the  sticks,  through  a 
bath  of  weld.  When  the  ground  is  sufficiently  deep,  a  pat- 
tern is  tried  in  the  vat,  to  see  if  the  color  has  the  wished-for 
tone  ;  if  it  has  not  ground  enough,  decoction  of  weld  is 
added  ;  and  when  it  is  ascertained  that  the  yellow  has  reached 
the  proper  degree,  the  silk  is  withdrawn,  and  passed  through 
the  vat  as  for  blue.  To  render  the  color  deeper,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  vary  its  tone,  there  are  added  to  the  yellow 
bath,  when  the  weld  has  been  taken  out,  juice  of  Brazil-wood, 
decoction  of  fustet,  and  anotta. 

There  are  several  shades  of  green  known  to  dyers  :  thus  a 
sea  green  has  twenty-five  or  thirty  graduations,  from  the 
weakest,  called  Pistachio  green,  to  the  darkest,  called  Te- 
rasse  green.  These  greens  are  produced  in  the  following 
manner : — 

1.  The  silk  is  first  boiled,  as  usual,  then  strongly  alumed  ;  it  is  then  cooled  at 
the  river,  and  distributed  into  hanks  of  about  four  or  five  ounces  each.  This  pre- 
caution is  necessary  for  giving  the  yellow  ground  to  all  silk  intended  for  green ; 


*  The  shade  next  to  purple  is  gilly-Jlower ;  then  grisdeline,  then  lighter  still, 
peach-blossom :  all  these  are  made  with  somewhat  smaller  proportions  of  the  ingre- 
dients, or  are  made  followers  to  the  deeper  colors. 


420 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


because  thus  distributed  in  smaller  banks,  it  is  more  evenly  dyed,  which  is  of  the 
greatest  consequence. 

2.  The  weld  is  now  boiled,  and  a  portion  of  the  liquor  is  mixed  with  clean 
water,  strong  enough  to  give  a  good  lemon  ground.  The  silk  should  then  be 
carefully  turned  in  this  liquor,  from  hand  to  hand.  When  the  ground  seems 
nearly  full  enough,  some  threads  of  the  silk  are  dipped  in  the  blue  vat  to  try 
whether  the  color  of  the  ground  is  sufficiently  full  for  the  shade  required ;  if  not, 
add  a  little  weld  decoction.  When  the  color  comes  out  good,  the  silk  is  cooled 
and  beetled  once ;  then  wrung  and  formed  into  hanks  convenient  for  dipping  in 
the  vat.  Dip  skien  by  skien  as  for  blues,  it  is  wrung  quickly  and  with  the  pre- 
cautions above  noticed. 

3.  All  the  lighter  shades,  fifteen  or  sixteen  in  number,  of  this  green,  only  re- 
quire to  be  dipped  in  the  vat  to  be  completely  finished. 

4.  As  to  the  Pistachio  green,  if  the  vat  be  yet  too  strong,  the  silk  should  be 
taken  out,  and  carefully  opened  and  aired,  but  not  washed.  It  is  then  worked  in 
the  hands,  that  is,  held  in  one  hand  and  struck  with  the  other,  by  which  means 
the  silk  being  disentangled  and  aired,  the  color  becomes  equally  clear.  A  few 
threads  are  then  rinsed,  and  if  the  color  is  right  the  whole  is  washed,  which  fin- 
ishes the  operation. 

5.  Dark  shades  may  be  produced  when  the  weld  is  exhausted,  by  adding  a  little 
logwood  liquor  to  the  bath  ;  and  for  the  darkest,  a  decoction  of  fustic  will  produce 
the  desired  effect.  After  which  the  silk  should  be  washed  and  beetled.  It  should 
then  be  dipped  in  the  vat ;  always  remembering  that  the  perfection  of  the  color 
depends  upon  washing  and  drying  quickly  when  it  comes  out  of  the  vat.* 

Emerald  or  Meadow  Green. — The  only  difference  be- 
tween the  meadow  and  the  emerald  green  is,  that  the  first  is 
rather  the  darkest.  Emerald  green  is  alumed  as  for  sea 
green ;  after  having  cooled  and  rinsed  the  silk  at  the  river,  it 
is  dipped  and  worked  in  the  weld  liquor  that  had  been  pre- 
viously used  for  a  sea  green.  When  the  color  seems  even, 
some  threads  are  put  into  the  vat  to  try  the  effect  of  the 
ground :  if  the  green  be  too  blue,  it  is  again  put  into  the  de- 
coction of  the  weld,  or  a  fresh  one.  The  vat  is  then  stirred, 
and  the  silk  again  entered,  till  by  making  a  fresh  essay  the 
ground  for  the  shade  required  is  obtained. 

For  landscape  greens,  a  mixture  is  necessary  to  give  them 
something  of  a  red  tint  in  addition  to  the  yellow  and  blue. 

*  There  are  many  other  shades,  differing  from  the  sea  green,  because  they  have 
i  yellow  cast :  they  are,  however,  produced  by  the  same  ingredients .  for  example, 
the  willow  green.  These  greens  when  alumed  are  dipped  in  a  very  strong  weld 
liquor,  and  when  exhausted,  fustic  or  annotta  are  added  to  complete  the  shade. 
If  the  color  requires  darkening,  a  little  logwood  may  be  given  after  the  fustic  or 
*notta.    The  silk  is  afterwards  dipped  in  the  vat. 


OLIVE.  421 

This  is  done  by  mixing  a  small  quantity  of  Brazil  with  the 
weld  liquor,  when  giving  the  yellow. 

Mixed  greens,  says  Berthollet,  that  require  brazil,  or  fustet, 
should  receive  the  color  of  these  drugs,  either  on  the  weld 
yellow,  or  previous  to  welding.  For  when  once  the  silk  has 
entered  the  indigo  vat,  it  is  unalumed  ;  nor  can  it  then  take 
any  other  color  but  black,  which  stripes  without  any  additional 
mordant ;  or  else  by  means  of  logwood  and  copperas.  These 
two  colors  are  always  given  upon  a  blue  ground,  but  no  other. 

Bottle  Green. — There  are  a  great  many  shades  of  this 
color,  but  they  are  all  managed  pretty  much  in  the  same  way, 
as  the  foregoing.  The  silk  must  be  well  alumed ;  then 
washed,  and  dyed  in  weld  liquor. 

Thus  it  will  be  perceived,  that  all  greens  which  are  made 
simply  from  the  combination  of  yellow  and  blue,  are  produced 
in  pretty  much  the  same  way,  at  least  the  difference  in  the 
processes  of  varying  the  shades  is  but  slight,  and  depends  en- 
tirely upon  the  skill  of  the  dyer. 

OLIVE. — The  mixture  of  red  and  yellow  requires  no  pe- 
culiar observations,  in  addition  to  what  has  been  already 
stated  in  the  preceding  sections  of  this  work. 

Russet  olive. — This  color  may  be  obtained,  by  giving 
fustet  and  logwood  liquor  after  the  welding,  without  alkali. 
If  a  more  reddish  color  be  required,  the  fustet  should  be 
omitted,  and  the  logwood  given  (after  the  welding). 

In  all  these  matters,  however,  some  experience  is  necessary, 
as  has  been  already  shown  ;  good  taste,  it  should  ever  be  re- 
membered, is  an  indispensable  qualification,  and  without 
which  no  dyer  ever  has  or  ever  will  become  eminent  in  this 
or  any  other  branch  of  manufacturing  industry.  It  should 
also  be  borne  in  mind,  that  a  dyer,  to  become  eminent,  must 
possess  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  elements  of  chemistry  ; 
for  it  is  absurd  to  talk  of  a  dyer  who  is  ignorant  of  chemical 
science  ;  every  step  he  takes  must  be  in  the  dark.* 


*  See  chapter  II.  Part  I.,  and  chapter  II.  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of  Water, 
where  we  have  given  some  practical  instructions  on  the  qualifications  necessary 
for  a  good  dyer. 


422 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


AURORA  AND  ORANGE.— For  silks  intended  to  become 
aurora  and  orange,  it  is  sufficient  to  scour  them  at  the  rate 
of  20  per  cent,  of  soap.  Then  dye  with  anotta,  more  or  less, 
according  to  the  shade  required.* 

"  When  raw  silks,"  says  Berthollet,  "  are  to  be  dyed,  those 
naturally  white  are  chosen,  and  dyed  in  the  anotta  bath, 
which  should  be  cold,  in  order  that  the  alkali  may  not  attack 
the  gum  of  the  silk,  and  deprive  it  of  the  elasticity  which  it  is 
desirable  for  it  to  preserve." 

"  To  make,"  says  another  writer,  "an  orange  hue,  which 
contains  more  red  than  the  aurora,  it  is  requisite  after  dyeing 
with  anotta,  to  redden  the  silks  with  vinegar,  alum,  or  lemon 
juice.  The  acid,  by  saturating  the  alkali  employed  for  dis- 
solving the  anotta,  destroys  the  shade  of  yellow  that  the  al- 
kali had  given,  and  restores  it  to  its  natural  color,  which  in- 
clines a  good  deal  to  red."  For  the  deep  shades,  the  practice 
at  Paris,  as  Macquer  informs  us,  is  to  pass  the  silks  through 
alum ;  and  if  the  color  be  not  red  enough,  they  are  passed 
through  a  faint  bath  of  Brazil-wood.  At  Lyons,  the  dyers 
who  use  safflower,  sometimes  employ  old  baths  of  this  ingre- 
dient for  dipping  the  deep  oranges. 

Guliche  recommends  to  avoid  heat  in  the  preparation  of 
anotta.  In  this  he  is  perfectly  right,  as  we  have  shown  in 
chapter  VI.,  Part  III.,  article  Orange  with  Anotta. 

*  See  next  chapter  (III.),  article  Pinks,  Crimsons,  Roses,  fyc.  with  safflower; 
see  also  chapter  III.  Part  III.,  article  Safflower  Pink;  and  chapters  V.  and  VI. 
of  the  same  Part  (III.),  articles  Safflower  and  Prussian  Blue,  and  Orange  wUh 
Anotta. 


CHAPTER  III, 

OF  BLUE,  YELLOW,  SCARLET,  CRIMSON,  &c. 

PROCESSES  OF  DYEING  BLUE  ON  SILK. 

Processes  of  Dyeing  Blue  with  Berries — With  the  Indigo  Vat — With  Chemic,  or 
Solution  of  Indigo — Yellow  with  Chrome — With  the  Sulphuret  of  Cadmium — 
With  Weld — Scarlet — Flesh-color —  Crimson — Violets — Puces — Crimsons  with 
Brazil-wood — Pinks,  Roses,  &c. — Safflower,  Beautiful  Process  of  Dyeing  with, 
which  supersedes  every  other  method — Cherry  Reds — Rose-Colors,  &c: 

We  shall  commence  this  subject  by  referring  the  reader  to 
chapter  IV.,  Part  I.,  and  also  to  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  ar- 
ticles Chemistry  of  the  Blue  Vat,  Preparation  of  Chemic, 
Sulphate  of  Iron,  The  Common  Blue  Vat,  Prussiate  of 
Potash,  Processes  of  Dyeing  Prussian  Blue,  and  Safflower 
and  Prussian  Blue  ;  in  all  of  which,  we  hope,  very  valu- 
able, as  well  as  new  information  has  been  given  upon  these 
subjects. 

I.  DYEING  BLUE  WITH  BERRIES,  &c— The  ma- 
terials employed  for  this  purpose,  are  indigo,  Prussian  blue, 
logwood,*  bilberry,  elder  berries,  mulberries,  privet  berries, 
and  some  other  berries  whose  juice  becomes  blue  by  the  ad- 
dition of  a  small  portion  of  alkali,  or  of  the  salts  of  copper. 

To  dye  blue  with  such  berries  as  the  above,  boil  one  pound  of  them  in  water, 
adding  one  ounce  of  alum,  one  of  copperas,  and  one  of  blue  vitriol,  to  the  decoc- 
tion, or  in  their  stead  equal  parts  of  verdigris  and  tartar,  and  pass  the  goods  for 
a  sufficient  time  through  the  liquor.  When  an  iron  mordant  alone  is  employed,  a 
steel  blue  tint  is  obtained ;  and  when  a  tin  one,  a  blue  with  a  violet  cast. 

With  alkalies  and  acids,  the  privet  berries  have  the  same 
habitudes  as  bilberries ,  the  former  turning  them  green,  the 
latter  red.  They  usually  come  from  Italy  compressed  in 
dry  cakes,  and  are  infused  in  hot  water.    The  infusion  is 


*  See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article  Logwood. 


424 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


merely  filtered,  and  then  employed  without  any  mordant,  for 
dyeing  silk,  being  kept  at  a  warm  temperature  by  surround- 
ing the  bath  with  hot  water.    The  process  is  as  follows  : — 

The  goods  must  be  reeled  for  six  hours  through  the  bath,  in  order  to  become 
thoroughly  saturated  with  the  color;  they  are  then  to  be  rinsed  in  running  water, 
and  dried. 

One  pound  of  silk  requires  a  pound  and  a  half  of  the 
berry  cake.  In  the  residuary  bath,  other  tints  of  blue  may 
be  given.  Sometimes  the  dyed  silk  is  finished  by  running  it 
through  weak  alum  water. 

A  color  approaching  to  indigo  in  permanence,  but  which 
differs  from  it  in  being  soluble  in  alkalies,  though  incapable 
of  similar  disoxidizement,  is  the  gardenia  genipa  and  acu- 
leata  of  South  America,  whose  colorless  juice  becomes  dark 
blue  with  contact  of  air  ;  and  dyes  stuffs,  the  skin,  and  nails, 
of  an  unchangeable  deep  blue  color,  but  the  juice  must  be 
applied  in  the  colorless  state. 

II.  INDIGO  BLUE.— The  first  observation  to  be  made  is, 
that  the  raw  silk  should  be  previously  boiled  in  soap  and 
water,  thirty  pounds  to  the  hundred  weight ;  and  that  by 
scrupulous  washing  and  beetling,  every  part  of  the  silk  should 
be  perfectly  freed  from  soap ;  for  soap,  as  already  observed, 
spoils  the  indigo  vat,  and  occasions  the  goods  to  be  spotted. 
The  vats  are  conical  such  as  are  commonly  used  for  the 
blue  dye  of  woolen,  and  mounted  in  the  same  manner.  There 
should  be  three  vats  of  different  degrees  of  strength,  and  size ; 
a  vat  of  ten  buckets  to  be  charged  with  a  pound  of  indigo, 
one  of  twelve  buckets  to  be  charged  with  three  pounds,  and 
one  of  fifteen  buckets  to  be  charged  with  six  pounds.  The 
first  and  smallest  vat  should  be  kept  weak;  it  can  be  strength- 
ened, when  necessary,  by  means  of  the  third. 

The  management  of  the  vat  is  much  the  same  as  in  dye- 
ing wool,  which  see.  The  vats  are  charged  exactly  as  for 
woolen  goods.  When  the  silk  is  entered  into  the  vat,  it 
should  be  done  by  a  hank  at  a  time,  of  not  more  at  the  ut- 
most than  eight  or  ten  ounces  weight ;  it  should  be  worked 
on  a  stick  under  the  liquor,  and  after  being  turned  four  or  five 
times,  taken  out  to  air,  that  it  may  acquire  the  blue :  this 


♦ 


BLUE. 


425 


will  not  take  more  than  half  a  minute  or  less  ;  it  should  then 
be  dipped  again  and  worked  in  the  liquor  until  it  has  ac- 
quired the  color  wanted.  When  the  first  hank  is  worked  in 
the  liquor,  observe  how  many  turns  it  receives  in  the  dye,  and 
how  often  it  is  taken  out  to  air,  and  give  exactly  the  same 
number  of  turns  to  each  succeeding  hank,  else  the  color  will 
be  deeper  on  some  hanks  than  on  others  in  the  same  parcel. 

As  already  observed,  silk  dyed  blue  in  the  vat,  should  be 
wrung  well  and  expeditiously  with  the  hand  ;  neither  should 
it  be  permitted  to  turn  blue  in  the  air,  but  should  be  carried 
to  the  water  and  washed  immediately.  For  this  purpose, 
there  should  be  two  tubs  of  water,  so  that  after  washing  in 
the  first  tub  it  may  be  more  thoroughly  cleansed  in  the  other. 
If  there  should  be  a  dry  wind  or  current  of  air,  the  silk  will 
not  be  dyed  evenly,  if  it  is  not  wrung  dry  quickly  (or  taken  to 
a  room  well  heated,  in  which  there  is  a  swing  ventilator, 
which  must  be  kept  in  motion  till  the  silk  has  acquired  the 
blue  color,)  it  will  spot.  Indeed,  all  silk  dyed  blue  should  be 
dried  in  ten  minutes  ;  and  should  be  shaken  and  kept  in  con- 
stant motion  while  airing:  otherwise  it  will  turn  blue  un- 
evenly or  in  streaks. 

It  is  for  this  reason  that  on  taking  it  out  of  the  vat,  it  is 
necessary  to  plunge  it  into  water  to  take  off  the  green  color ; 
the  air  in  the  water  answering  this  purpose  :  a  little  sulphu- 
ric acid  would  ensure  and  expedite  this  use  of  the  water. 

It  should,  however,  be  remarked,  that  no  deep  blue  can  be 
given  to  silk  by  the  indigo  vat  alone.  The  silk,  therefore, 
must  first  receive  a  strong  grounding  with  archil,  before  en- 
tering in  the  vat.  It  is  necessary  also,  from  time  to  time,  to 
try  the  strength  of  the  vat,  to  know  the  depth  of  the  archil 
color  that  must  previously  be  given  ;  and  when  the  archil 
ground  has  been  given,  the  silk  must  be  washed  and  well 
beetled  before  dyeing  the  blue. 

For  the  dyeing  operations,  with  the  blue  vat,  four  persons 
are  necessary ;  one  dyes  and  washes  the  silk ;  another  wrings 
it  carefully;  a  third  opens  it;  a  fourth  moves  the  swing 
fan  while  the  silk  is  being  dried.  When  the  hanks  are 
opened,  the  strings  should  be  cut,  that  the  air  may  have 

54 


426 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


access  to  every  part.  For  dyeing  silk,  particularly  with  the 
blue  vat,  fine  dry  weather  should  be  chosen. 

In  dipping  silk  which  is  intended  for  various  shades,  that 
meant  for  the  darkest  should  be  dyed  in  the  freshest  or 
strongest  vat,  and  so  on  continuing  to  dip  in  the  same  man- 
ner ;  except  that  as  the  vat  weakens,  or  becomes  exhausted, 
the  silk  should  be  left  in  a  little  longer  each  time.*  When 
the  vat  has  greatly  decreased  in  strength,  it  will  answer  for 
the  lighter  shades.  After  dyeing  a  considerable  quantity  of 
goods,  the  vat  is  apt  to  lose  its  green  color,  in  which  case  it 
is  necessary  to  refresh  it  with  pearlash,  madder,  and  bran,  in 
the  original  proportions,  about  a  fourth  part  of  the  first  dose ; 
observing,  however,  that  these  new  ingredients  should  be 
boiled  together  for  a  few  minutes  before  they  are  put  into  the 
vat,  which  should  then  be  well  raked  up,  covered,  and  suf- 
fered to  rest  for  a  few  hours  before  using  it. 

All  these  directions  are  necessary,  as  well  as  dexterity  in 
the  handling. 

HI.  CHEMIC  BLUE.— Dyeing  silk  blue  with  chemic  or 
sulphate  of  indigo,  differs  but  little  from  the  processes  already 
described  for  dyeing  wool.f 

For  English  blue,  says  Berthollet,  a  light  blue  must  be 
first  given  to  the  silk  in  the  vat.  On  being  taken  out,  it  is 
passed  through  hot  water,  washed  in  running  water,  and  put 
into  a  bath  composed  of  the  sulphuric  solution  of  indigo 
(chemic,)  to  which  a  little  solution  of  tin  has  been  added,  till 
it  has  assumed  the  desired  shade,  or  has  exhausted  the  bath. 
Before  introducing  the  silk  into  this  bath,  it  may  be  passed 
through  a  solution  of  alum,  in  which  it  must  not  be  suffered 
to  remain  long. 

Silk  dyed  by  this  process,  says  this  author,  has  neither  the 
reddish  cast  of  the  indigo  vat,  nor  the  greenish  cast  of  the 
blues  dyed  with  chemic. 

*  As  raw  silk  takes  a  deeper  color  than  boiled  silk,  therefore,  the  boiled  silk 
should  be  dyed  first. 

t  See  chapter  III.  Part  I.,  article  Indigo ;  see  also  chapters  V.  and  VII.  Part 
III.,  articles  Preparation  of  Chemic,  and  Common  Blue  Vat ;  and  chapter  III 
Part  IV. 


BLUE. 


427 


IV.  PRUSSIAN  BLUE.— The  application  of  mineral  col- 
oring substances  to  cotton,  silk,  &c,  is  one  of  the  most 
marked  improvements  in  modern  dyeing.  As  long  ago  as 
the  year  1811,  Mr.  Raymond  received  from  the  French  gov- 
ernment the  sum  of  8,000  francs,  as  a  reward  for  communi- 
cating to  the  public  his  process  for  dyeing  silk  of  a  uniform, 
fast,  and  bright  Prussian  blue  color.  To  obtain  the  color  he 
proceeds  as  follows  : — 

1.  By  a  gentle  calcination  till  sulphurous  acid  fumes  begin  to  appear,  he  con- 
verts copperas  into  the  red  sulphate  of  iron.  This  he  dissolves  in  sixteen  times 
its  weight  of  warm  water,  and  filters,  when  he  has  a  clear  solution  of  a  lively  yel- 
low color,  bordering  on  red. 

2.  The  silk,  prepared  as  for  the  indigo  dye,  is  put  into  this  solution,  and  left 
there  a  shorter  or  longer  time,  according  to  the  shade  of  blue  that  is  wanted ;  then 
taken  out,  and  well  wrung. 

3.  The  silk  is  now  thoroughly  cleaned  at  the  river,  by  beetling  twice :  plunging 
and  agitating  each  time. 

4.  Dissolve  in  pure  water  (heated  to  167°  F.)  one  ounce  of  ferroprussiate  of 
potash  to  every  twelve  ounces  of  silk.*  When  the  prussiate  is  entirely  dissolved, 
add  one  part  muriatic  acid,  at  about  21°  Baume,  stirring  well,  and  when  the  liquor 
has  assumed  a  greenish  cast,  the  silk  must  be  immediately  plunged  in  and  stirred 
about  for  a  few  minutes. 

5.  The  silk  having  received  the  blue  equally  is  taken  out,  wrung  and  beetled 
two  or  three  times :  plunging  and  agitating  each  time,  to  free  it  from  any  loose 
portions  of  the  prussiate. 

6.  Should  the  prussiate  bath  become  of  a  blue  color  when  the  silk  is  dipped  in 
it,  it  is  an  indication  that  it  contains  either  too  much  prussiate  or  muriatic  acid,  or 
that  the  silk,  after  passing  through  the  mordant,  had  not  been  sufficiently  cleaned. 
Now  take  out,  wash  well  at  the  river,  wring  tightly  with  the  hands,  and  place 
loosely  on  poles. 

7.  Fill  a  large  vessel,  three-fourths  full,  with  cold  water,  and  add,  to  every  100 
pounds  of  silk,  two  pounds  of  ammonia  (water  of),  marking  21°  of  Baume's  spirit 
hydrometer.  The  blue  will  immediately  become,  at  least,  three  shades  deeper: 
taking  a  much  richer  and  brighter  tint,  at  the  same  time  fixing  more  perfectly  in 
the  silk.  The  change  is  effected  in  a  few  minutes.  Wring  out,  and  rinse  in 
running  water,  without  beetling;  then  dry  on  poles,  like  other  dyed  silks. t 

The  solution  of  a  little  soap,  added  cold  to  the  ammonia 
bath  improves  the  color  and  softens  the  silk :  making  it  easier 
to  separate.    The  soap  must  be  perfectly  dissolved  before 

*  144°  F.  is,  according  to  Mr.  Raymond,  the  most  suitable  temperature  for  the 
prussiate  bath. 

t  The  silk  need  not  be  left  on  the  poles  over  twenty  hours  to  give  the  color  time 
to  come  out  well. 


428 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


adding  it. — (See  chapter  V.  Part  III.,  article  Prussiate  of 
Potash.) 

V.  YELLOW  WITH  WELD.— The  raw  silk  should  be 
boiled  with  twenty-five  pounds  of  soap  to  every  hundred 
pounds  of  goods.  Then  washed,  beetled,  and  alumed  in  the 
usual  way  ;  after  aluming,  wash,  place  on  rods,  in  hanks  of 
half  a  pound  each.  Now  dye  (at  120°  F.)  with  two  pounds 
of  weld  to  the  pound  of  goods. 

Some  dyers  use  a  small  quantity  of  pearlash  with  the  weld, 
which,  they  say,  brightens  the  color  and  aids  the  aluming, 
by  suddenly  fixing  it  on  the  goods,  before  any  of  the  alum  is 
dissolved  (from  the  goods)  in  the  bath.  The  silk  is  worked 
in  the  weld  liquor  till  the  proper  shade  be  obtained. 

Quercitron  may  be  substituted  for  weld.  The  color  may 
be  brightened  by  adding  a  little  chalk  or  potash  towards  the 
end  of  the  operation.    The  solution  of  tin  may  also  be  used.* 

For  pale  lemon  and  canary  colors  the  silk  is  scoured  as  for 
blue.  The  strength  of  the  bath  is  proportioned  to  the  shade 
sought  for.  If  it  be  wished  to  have  a  yellow  cast  verging  on 
green,  more  or  less  of  the  indigo  vat  is  added,  if  the  silk  has 
been  scoured  without  azuring.f 

To  prevent  these  shades  from  being  too  deep,  a  slighter 
aluming  than  usual  may  be  given  to  the  silk. 

VI.  YELLOW  WITH  CHROME . — Cleanse  the  silk  at 
one  heating  of  two  hours,  wash-  and  wring ;  plunge  the 
skeins  in  a  solution,  more  or  less  strong,  of  subacetate  of 
lead,t  according  to  the  depth  of  yellow  sought  for.  At  the 
end  of  two  hours,  take  out  the  goods,  and  expose  to  the  air 
for  half  an  hour  ;  wash,  and  wring. 

Now  prepare  a  bath,  in  which  a  sufficient  quantity  of  neu- 
tral chromate  of  potash  (about  from  the  fifteenth  to  the  twen- 
ty-eighth part  of  the  weight  of  the  silk)  is  dissolved.  Neu- 
tralize the  bath  with  half  a  glassful  of  muriatic  acid  ;  then 
enter  the  goods  for  half  an  hour,  at  nearly  boiling  heat.  They 
are  now  taken  out,  and  wrung  upon  poles,  over  the  bath ; 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article  Tin.  t  See  chapter  III.  Part  II. 

X  See  chafer  I.  Part  III.,  and  Appendix,  article  Acetate  of  Lead. 


f 


YELLOW.  429 

after  which  they  are  washed  in  a  slight  solution  of  soap,  at  a 
lukewarm  heat ;  then  in  a  stream  of  cold  water. 

The  shades  may  be  varied  by  giving  more  or  less  of  the 
subacetate  of  lead,  and  chromate  of  potash,  which  must 
always  be  neutralized  by  muriatic  acid. — (See  chapter  IV. 
Part  III.,  article  Processes  of  Dyeing  Yellow,  and  chapter 
VII.  of  the  same  Part,  article  Processes  of  Dyeing  Orange.) 

VII.  GOLDEN  YELLOW  BY  SULPHURET  OF  CAD- 
MIUM.— We  have  already  shown  the  application  to  the  dye- 
ing of  tissues,  of  several  mineral  compounds,  remarkable  for 
a  lively  and  durable  color,  as  well  as  for  their  unalterability 
on  exposure  to  light.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned,  Prus 
sian  blue,  orpiment,  and  chromate  of  lead. 

The  sulphuret  of  cadmium  may  be  fixed  on  silk,  by  first 
impregnating  the  goods  with  chloride  of  cadmium,  and  after- 
wards passing  them  through  a  weak  solution  of  hydro-sul- 
phate of  potash  or  soda.  It  is  easy  to  perform  this  operation, 
which  is  simply, 

Keeping  the  silk  immersed  in  a  solution  of  chloride  of  cadmium,  at  a  tempera- 
ture of  from  120°  to  140°  F.,  during  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes;  wringing  out, 
and  then  passing  it,  at  a  common  temperature,  through  a  dilute  solution  of  hydro- 
sulphate  of  potash  in  water.  As  soon  as  the  silk  is  immersed  in  this  solution  it 
takes  a  golden  yellow  tint,  and  which  remains  intimately  combined  with  the  sub- 
stance of  the  silk. 

The  facility  with  which  silk  may  be  dyed  by  the  process 
above  mentioned,  leads  us  to  believe  that  if  cadmium  was  to 
become  more  common,  its  sulphuret  would  be  employed  in 
painting  as  well  as  in  dyeing.  Indeed,  the  giving  of  color  to 
textures,  by  this  new  mineral  compound,  would  obviate  in- 
conveniences which  are  naturally  attached  to  the  yellow  dyes 
by  sulphuret  of  arsenic  (orpiment,)  and  chromate  of  lead. 

If  the  results  here  presented  can  find  no  direct  application 
at  this  moment,  we  shall  have  at  least  fixed  the  attention  of 
chemists  and  practical  dyers  upon  the  subject,  which  is  our 
principal  aim  in  giving  the  foregoing  article. 

VIII.  SCARLET.* — Bancroft  states  that  if  the  tartar  be 
left  out  the  color  will  be  a  crimson  ;  that  the  tartar  gives  rise 


*  See  chapter  I.,  Part  IV. 


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DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


to  an  insoluble  tartrate  of  tin,  which  forms  with  cochineal  a 
yellow  color ;  that  the  ordinary  scarlet  is  a  mixture  of  one- 
fourth  of  this  yellow  color,  and  three-fourths,  or  a  little  more 
of  the  crimson  color,  which  cochineal  gives  with  the  solution 
of  tin.  Consequently,  he  proposes  to  substitute  for  the  tartar, 
a  preliminary  dye  with  quercitron,  which,  by  its  yellow,  pro- 
duces the  same  effect,  and  to  dye  afterwards  with  solution  of 
tin  and  cochineal,  of  which,  in  this  case,  no  more  than  four- 
fifths  of  the  ordinary  proportion  are  required.  We  have  dyed, 
says  Berthollet  scarlet,  by  employing  these  proportions  of  so- 
lutions of  tin  and  tartar ;  in  another  pattern,  we  doubled  the 
proportions  of  tartar ;  and  in  a  third,  we  left  out  this  ingre- 
dient. The  first  took  a  beautiful  scarlet ;  the  second  inclined 
more  to  yellow ;  and  the  third  had  a  vinous  cast,  and  was 
less  lively,  although  not  exactly  crimson.  It  is  true,  there- 
fore, that  the  tartar  causes  the  color  of  cochineal  to  incline  to 
yellow,  and  that  it  produces  more  of  this  effect,  the  greater  its 
proportion. 

If  the  proportion  of  the  solution  of  tin  is  too  great,  it  be- 
comes prejudicial,  and  impoverishes  the  color,  because  a 
portion  of  the  coloring  matter  is  retained  in  solution.  It 
may  also  be  remarked,  as  a  general  rule,  that  the  larger  the 
proportion  of  tin  the  deeper  the  color.  We  have  been  suf- 
ficiently diffuse  upon  this  subject  in  chapter  I.,  Part  IV.* 

IX.  CRIMSON. — Silks  intended  to  be  dyed  cochineal 
crimson,  according  to  Macquer,  should  have  only  20  pounds 
of  soap  to  100  pounds  of  silk. 

1.  When  boiled,  washed,  and  beetled,  the  silk  is  soaked  in 


*  Flesh  color  is  made  in  the  sequel  of  the  finishing  bath  of  the  scarlet  dye,  by 
throwing  away  a  little  of  the  bath,  and  refreshing  it  with  cold  water.  The  boiling 
must  continue  but  for  a  very  short  time.  Flesh  color  may  likewise  be  made  in  the 
sequel  of  the  violets,  by  adding  a  little  solution  of  tin.  It  must,  however,  be  ob- 
served, that  the  weak  and  delicate  shades  of  oranges,  lilacs,  mallows,  cherries,  and 
roses,  have  more  lustre  and  freshness  when  dyed  in  a  single  bath,  than  when  they 
are  subjected  to  both  the  preparation  and  finishing  baths.  On  this  account  it  is 
sufficient  to  introduce  into  this  bath  the  necessary  ingredients.  The  cloth,  when 
merely  moistened  and  unimpregnated  with  mordant,  becomes  charged  with  the  color- 
ing particles  less  readily,  but  in  a  more  even  manner.  There  is  also  in  this  mode 
of  operating  a  saving  of  time  and  fuel. 


CRIMSON. 


431 


a  strong  alum  water  from  12  to  15  hours  ;  then  washed  at 
the  river  sufficiently  to  rid  it  of  superfluous  alum,  but  no 
more  ;  although  some  recommend  to  wash  several  times  and 
beetle  twice  ;  but  this  only  serves  to  wash  away  the  alum. 

2.  The  bath  is  now  filled  to  within  six  inches  of  the  top 
with  cold  water.  Bring  to  a  boil :  cool  down  with  a  little 
cold  water ;  then  throw  in  from  one  to  two  ounces  white 
galls,*  and  from  two  and  a  half  to  three  ounces  of  cochineal 
to  each  pound  of  silk.f  Let  boil  for  three  quarters  of  an  hour ; 
then  add  one  ounce  of  scarlet  compostion  for  each  pound  of 
cochineal.  This  compostion  is  made  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — 

Dissolve  2  ounces  of  sal  ammoniac,  in  12  ounces  of  water ;  add  this  to  1  pound 
of  aquafortis  (nitric  acid),  and  give  six  ounces  of  feathered  tin. 

3.  The  bath  is  now  cooled  down  with  a  little  water,  and  the 
silk  immediately  entered ;  turning  the  skeins  or  hanks  round 
the  sticks  till  they  appear  of  a  uniform  color.  The  fire  is 
then  increased,  and  the  bath  kept  boiling  for  two  hours,  turn- 
ing round  the  silk  from  time  to  time ;  after  which  the  fire  is 
withdrawn,  that  is,  after  the  expiration  of  two  hours.  The 
silk  is  now  left  in  the  bath  for  some  hours ;  then  washed  in 
the  river,  giving  two  beetlings,  when  it  is  wrung  and  dried. t 

The  color  may  be  saddened,  if  desirable,  with  copperas, 
according  to  the  shade  required.  The  copperas  deprives  the 
cochineal  of  its  yellow  color,  and  gives  it  a  violet  hue.  No- 
thing, says  Mr.  Cooper,  but  copperas,  is  fit  to  sadden  cochi- 
neal scarlets,  which  it  does  by  means,  chiefly,  of  the  galls 
employed  in  the  dye. 

X.  GENOA  CRIMSON. — The  boiling  process  is  precisely 


*  White  galls  are  preferable,  because  black  ones  deaden  the  crimson ;  and  if 
even  too  large  a  quantity  of  the  former  be  introduced,  the  color  becomes  duller. 
Macquer  says  that  the  galls  serve  merely  to  increase  the  weight  of  the  silk ;  their 
general  effect,  however,  is  to  render  the  colors  more  durable.  They  are  indispen- 
sable at  least  for  the  crimsons  intended  to  be  saddened  or  browned. 

t  It  is  seldom  necessary  to  use  quite  three  ounces  of  cochineal  to  the  pound  of 
silk. 

t  It  is  customary,  indeed,  it  is  necessary,  before  entering  the  goods  in  the  dye- 
liquor,  to  dip  them  in  lukewarm  water.    This  makes  the  dye  strike  evenly. 


I 


432  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

the  same  as  already  described,  namely,  at  the  rate  of  20 
pounds  of  soap  to  100  pounds  of  silk.*  The  process  of  dye- 
ing the  color,  for  72  pounds  of  silk,  is  as  follows  : — 

1.  From  16  to  18  pounds  of  finely  powdered  roach  alum  is  thrown  into  a  cop- 
per full  of  cold  water,t  and  as  soon  as  the  alum  is  perfectly  dissolved  the  silk  is 
entered,  where  it  should  remain,  if  for  a  deep  color,  from  12  to  15  hours.  It  is 
then  taken  out  and  washed  at  the  river,  as  much  as  is  necessary  to  clear  away  the 
crystalized  alum;  more  than  this,  as  already  observed,  is  injurious.  After  the 
washing,  the  hanks  should  be  dressed  on  the  skein  sticks,  that  they  may  take  the 
dye  equally. 

2.  Of  the  72  pounds  of  silk,  above  mentioned,  32  pounds  areorganzine  or  warp: 
the  remainder  weft.  At  Genoa,  it  is  customary  to  allow  2  ounces  of  cochineal  to 
12  ounces  of  organzine,  if  intended  for  the  warp  of  damask  furniture,  and  one  and 
three  quarter  ounces  to  12  ounces  of  the  weft;  supposing  it  necessary  to  the  beau- 
ty of  the  color,  that  the  warp  should  be  something  fuller  than  the  weft ;  then  they 
add  2|-  ounces  of  cochineal  instead  of  2  ounces,  as  above  stated.  They  do  not, 
however,  give  any  additional  quantity  to  the  weft. 

3.  To  dye  this  quantity  (72  lbs.)  of  silk,  they  make  use  of  an  oval  copper,  con- 
taining, when  full,  200  quarts  of  water.  The  copper  is  filled  with  soft  water,  and 
into  which  2  ounces  of  tartar,  2  ounces  of  safflower,  and  2|  pounds  of  well  mashed 
white  galls  are  put.  After  these  drugs  have  boiled  for  15  minutes,  11  pounds  10 
ounces  of  cochineal  is  added.  The  silk  is  now  entered  as  usual ;  but  the  organ- 
zine is  left  a  quarter  of  an  hour  longer  in  the  liquor  than  the  weft,  which  gives  it 
a  deeper  color.  One  hour  and  three  quarters  is  sufficient  for  the  weft,  and  two 
hours  for  the  warp. 

The  Genoese  are  persuaded  that  the  water,  both  for  dye- 
ing this  color,  and  the  washing  afterwards,  should  be  the 
finest  spring  water ;  for  they  remark,  that  the  crimson  dyed 
in  summer  with  cistern  water,  is  by  no  means  so  bright  as 
the  crimsons  dyed  at  other  seasons  when  the  fountains  are 
full. — (See  chapter  II.  Part  III.  article  Purity  of  Water.) 

XI.  DYEING  WITH  BRAZIL-WOOD. — The  use  of 
Brazil-wood  for  dyeing  what  is  called  false  crimson  is  con- 
siderable. The  silk  should  be  boiled  at  the  rate  of  20  parts 
of  soap  per  cent.,  and  then  alumed.    The  aluming  need  not 

*  For  scarlet  the  Genoese  use  from  45  to  50  pounds  of  soap  to  100  pounds  of 
goods. — (See  Bleaching,  chapter  III.  Part  IT.) 

f  Silk  should  always  be  alumed  cold :  if  alumed  in  warm  liquor,  it  is  apt  to  lose 
its  lustre.  It  is  better  to  make  the  alum  liquor  strong  than  weak ;  the  alum  com- 
bines with  the  silk  in  this  case  more  evenly  and  surely.  After  aluming,  the  silk 
must  be  sufficiently  washed  to  prevent  any  crystalized  alum  sticking  to  it,  but  no 
more. 


CRIMSON. 


433 


be  so  strong  as  for  cochineal  crimson.  The  silk  is  refreshed 
at  the  river  and  passed  through  a  bath  more  or  less  charged 
with  Brazil  juice,  according  to  the  shade  required. 

XII.  PINKS,  CRIMSONS,  ROSES,  &c,  WITH  SAF- 
FLOWER. — Safflower  contains  two  coloring  substances. 
The  one  is  a  yellow,  very  soluble  in  water,  and  of  no  use  to 
the  dyer.  To  free  the  safflower  from  this  yellow  coloring 
substance,  is  a  particular  part  of  the  manipulation  of  this 
dye-stuff.  The  other  coloring  substance  is  red,  and  is  ex- 
tracted from  the  vegetable  after  the  yellow  substance  Jias 
been  washed  away,  by  means  of  alkaline  carbonates.  The 
substance  is  used  very  extensively  for  dyeing  the  various 
shades  of  pinks,  crimsons,  roses,  &c,  upon  silk,  and  also  for 
the  same  colors  upon  cotton,  with  lavender,  lilac,  pearl. 
The  mode  of  preparing  safflower*  for  the  purpose  of  extract- 
ing the  red  matter  from  it,  was  for  a  long  time  that  recom- 
mended by  Berthollet,  and  followed  by  all  other  writers  upon 
the  subject ;  namely,  putting  a  quantity  into  a  fine  bag, 
u  tramping"  it  with  the  feet  in  water  until  the  yellow  color 
was  dissolved,  and  washed  away ;  the  mass  left  was  then 
treated  xoith  an  alkali  to  extract  the  red  matter.  But  al- 
though this  red  coloring  matter  is  considered  insoluble  in 
water,  it  will  be  found  that  the  bag  in  which  it  is  tramped, 
becomes  a  deep  crimson  red,  which  can  only  be  produced  by 
the  partial  solubility  of  this  red  matter.  This,  however,  ap- 
pears to  be  promoted  by  a  peculiar  influence  exerted  by  the 
cloth  on  the  matter  in  contact  with  it,  as  we  have  never  been 
able  to  discover  any  real  coloring  matter  in  the  water  which 
passed  through.  Whatever  be  the  cause,  there  is  experienced 
a  considerable  loss.  To  avoid  this,  the  safflower  is  put  into 
a  tub  without  any  bag,  with  as  much  water  as  will  cause  the 
whole  to  float  freely.  A  very  little  tramping  will  be  sufficient 
to  reduce  the  cakes  to  a  soft  flocculent  mass,  which  is  the 
sole  use  of  tramping.  We  may  remark,  that  if  a  piece  of 
cloth  be  put  in  amongst  the  safflower  while  tramping,  it  be- 


*  See  chapter  III.  Part  III.,  article  Safflvwer  Pink,  and  chapter  V.  of  the  same 
Part,  article  Safflow-er  and  Prussian  Blue. 

55 


434 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


comes  red ;  but  if  steeped  in  the  water  which  is  expressed 
from  the  safflower  after  being  trampled,  it  does  not  turn  red. 
The  safflower,  after  being  tramped,  is  removed  to  a  tub  or 
cask,  having  a  false  bottom  with  a  plug  in  it,  and  covered 
with  fine  haircloth.,  The  vessel  is  filled  with  clean  water, 
and  let  out  by  the  plug  at  the  bottom ;  filled  again,  and  so 
on,  until  the  water  passing  through  it  is  not  colored  yellow. 
After  this  it  is  put  into  a  measured  quantity  of  pure  water — 
about  three  gallons  to  the  pound  of  safflower — in  which  is 
dissolved  a  little  carbonate  of  soda,  or  carbonate  of  potash, 
(pearl  ash  does  well,)  about  an  ounce  to  the  pound  of  saf- 
flower. Some  kinds  require  less  than  others ;  but  care 
should  be  taken  that  too  much  is  not  used,  as  it  destroys  the 
brightness  of  the  color.  This  being  well  mixed  with  the 
water,  is  put  into  the  tub  containing  the  safflower ;  then 
being  well  stirred  and  allowed  to  stand  for  about  7  hours,  the 
plug  is  taken  out  and  the  clear  liquor  drawn  into  a  proper 
vessel.  This  liquor  contains  the  red  dye  which  has  been  ex- 
tracted by  the  alkali.  The  remaining  safflower  is  afterwards 
washed  by  pouring  upon  it  a  little  more  water  made  slightly 
alkaline ;  but  if  fine  light  colors  are  to  be  dyed  directly  from 
the  solution,  this  second  extract  does  not  answer  so  well,  the 
shade  is  not  so  pure.  The  liquor  extracted  in  this  mannei 
contains  both  red  and  yellow  coloring  matter.  For  this  rea- 
son silk  goods  are  not  dyed  directly  by  this  extract,  as  the 
silk  takes  up  a  portion  of  the  yellow  which  renders  the  color 
more  of  a  flesh  hue  than  is  due  in  the  rose  and  pink.  To 
dye  the  silks,  proceed  in  the  following  manner : — 

1.  Any  old  cotton  yarn  is  dyed  first  by  the  safflower  extract ;  the  cotton  yarn 
takes  up  nothing  but  the  red. 

2.  This  cotton  is  then  thoroughly  washed  in  cold  water  till  the  water  coming 
from  it  is  perfectly  clear ;  it  is  then  steeped  for  a  short  time  in  water  made  slightly 
alkaline  by  carbonate  of  soda  or  potash,  which  extracts  the  red  from  the  cotton, 
and  forms  the  dyeing  solution  for  silk. 

3.  The  silk  to  be  dyed  pink,  generally  receives  a  bottom  or  ground  by  passing  it 
through  a  weak  solution  of  cudbear  or  archil,  so  as  to  form  a  flesh  white  or  light 
lavender — the  depth  being  regulated  according  to  the  shade  of  pink  wanted. 

4.  The  silk  is  then  put  through  the  safflower  solution,  which  must  previously 
be  rendered  acid  by  a  little  lemon-juice  vinegar,  or  sulphuric  acid.*    When  the 


*  Of  all  the  acids  for  this  purpose  lemon  juice  is  the  best. 


CRIMSON. 


435 


safflower  liquor  is  exhausted,  the  silk  is  washed  in  clean  cold  water,  and  finished 
by  passing  through  a  little  water  made  acid  by  lemon  juice  or  tartar.  Neither 
vinegar  nor  sulphuric  acid  should  be  used  in  the  finishing  process. 

Cherry  reds,  Rose  colors  of  all  shades,  as  well  as  flesh  col- 
ors,  are  obtained  in  the  weaker  solutions  of  the  safflower. 
The  deepest  shades  should  be  dyed  first.  The  lightest  of  all 
the  shades  which  may  be  obtained  in  this  manner,  is  an  ex- 
tremely delicate  flesh  color,  and  requires  a  little  soap  to  be 
put  into  the  bath.  The  soap,  according  to  Berthollet,  light- 
ens the  color  and  prevents  it  from  taking  too  speedily,  or  be- 
coming uneven. 


CHAPTER  IV, 


SCOURING  OR  RENOVATING  ARTICLES  OF  DRESS,  &c. 

Nature  of  Scouring  Operations — Chemical  knowledge  indispensable  to  the  Scour- 
er— Should  be  a  Practical  Dyer — Simple  Stains — Compound  Stains — Nature  of 
Stains  and  the  best  methods  of  removing  them — Bleaching  -and  removing  Stains 
from  Books — Removing  Grease,  &c,  from  cloth — Allaire's  patent  process. 

The  art  of  cleansing  clothes  being  founded  upon  the  knowl- 
edge of  solvents,  the  practitioner  of  it  should,  as  we  shall 
presently  illustrate  by  examples,  be  acquainted  with  the  laws 
of  chemical  affinity.  Indeed,  the  scourer  should  be  a  practical 
dyer,  because  he  is  often  obliged  to  combine  dyeing  with 
scouring  operations.  The  scourer  cleans,  re-dyes,  and  turns 
out  as  new,  the  old  garments  sent  to  him,  whether  of  cloth, 
cotton,  linen,  gauzes,  or  silk ;  but  in  this  art,  as  in  many 
others,  the  means  that  will  answer  in  skilful  hands,  will  only 
spoil  the  articles  if  used  by  the  unskilful. 

The  art  of  cleaning  cloth,  says  Chaptal,  presupposes  first, 
a  knowledge  of  the  various  substances  liable  to  occasion 
spots  upon  them  ;  secondly,  a  knowledge  of  the  substan- 
ces to  which  we  must  have  recourse  in  order  to  remove  the 
spots  produced  upon  the  cloth  ;  thirdly,  a  knowledge  of  the 
manner  in  which  the  colors  of  the  cloth  will  be  affected  by 
the  re-agents  meant  to  be  employed  for  the  removal  of  the 
spots  ;  fourthly,  a  knowledge  of  the  manner  in  which  the 
cloths  themselves  will  be  affected  by  the  substances  proposed 
to  be  employed ;  fifthly,  he  should  know  how  to  restore  the 
color  of  the  cloth,  when  rendered  faint  by  the  process  of  taking 
out  the  spots. 

Among  the  spots  which  alter  the  colors  fixed  upon  cloth, 
some  are  caused  by  a  substance  which  may  be  described  as 
simple,  in  common  language  ;  and  others  by  a  substance 


SCOURING. 


437 


which  results  from  the  combination  of  two  or  more  bodies, 
that  may  act  separately  or  together  upon  the  cloth,  and  which 
may  therefore  be  called  compound.  Oils  and  fats  are  the 
substances  which  form  the  greater  part  of  simple  stains. 
They  give  a  deep  shade  to  the  ground  of  the  cloth  ;  they 
continue  to  spread  for  several  days  ;  they  attract  the  dust  and 
retain  it  so  strongly,  that  it  is  not  removeable  by  the  brush  ; 
and  eventually  render  the  stain  lighter  colored  upon  a  dark 
ground,  and  of  a  disagreeable  gray  tint  upon  a  pale  or  light 
ground.  The  general  principle  of  cleansing  all  spots,  consists 
in  applying  to  them  a  substance  which  shall  have  a  stronger 
affinity  for  the  matter  composing  them,  than  it  has  for  the 
cloth,  and  which  shall  render  them  soluble  in  some  liquid 
menstruum,  such  as  water,  spirits,  naptha,  oil  of  turpentine,  &c. 

Alkalies  would  seem  to  be  proper  in  this  point  of  view,  as 
they  are  the  most  powerful  solvents  of  grease  ;  but  they  act 
too  strongly  upon  silk  and  wool,  to  be  safely  applicable  in 
removing  stains.*  The  best  substances  for  this  purpose  are 
the  following : — 

1.  Soap.  2.  Chalk,  fuller's  earth,  soap  stone  or  steatite  (called  French  chalk). 
These  should  be  merely  diffused  through  a  little  water,  made  into  a  thin  paste,  spread 
upon  the  stain,  and  allowed  to  dry.  The  spot  requires  now  to  be  merely  brushed. 
3.  Ox-gall  and  yolk  of  egg  have  the  property  of  dissolving  fatty  bodies  without  af- 
fecting perceptibly  the  colors  or  texture  of  cloth,  and  may  therefore  be  employed 
with  advantage.  The  ox-gall  should  be  purified  to  prevent  its  greenish  tint  from 
degrading  the  brilliancy  of  dyed  goods,  or  the  purity  of  white. 

Thus  prepared,  it  is  the  most  precious  of  all  substances 
known  for  removing  these  kinds  of  stains.  The  volatile 
oil  of  turpentine  will  take  out  only  recent  stains  ;  for  which 
purpose  it  should  be  previously  purified  by  distillation  over 


*  The  colors  of  the  cloth  are  often  injured  by  the  re-agents  made  use  of.  In 
order  to  restore  them,  the  operator  must,  as  already  observed,  thoroughly  under- 
stand the  art  of  dyeing,  and  know  how  to  modify  the  means  according  to  the  cir- 
cumstances. This  is  sometimes  difficult,  because  it  is  necessary  to  produce  a  color 
similar  to  that  of  the  rest  of  the  cloth,  and  to  apply  that  color  to  a  particular  part  only. 
Sometimes  also  the  mordant  which  fixed  the  color,  or  the  basis  which  heightened  it, 
has  also  been  destroyed  and  must  be  restored.  It  is,  therefore,  evident  that  the  means 
employed  to  restore  the  color,  must  depend  upon  the  nature  of  the  color,  and  the 
means  employed  to  produce  it. 


438 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


quicklime.  Wax,  rosin,  turpentine,  pitch,  and  all  resinous 
bodies  in  general,  form  stains  of  greater  or  less  adhesion, 
which  may  be  dissolved  out  by  pure  alcohol.  The  juices  of 
fruits,  and  the  juices  of  all  vegetables  in  general,  deposit  upon 
cloths  marks  in  their  peculiar  hues.  Stains  of  wine,  mulber- 
ries, black  currants,  morellos,  liquors,  yield  only  to  soaping 
with  the  hand,  followed  by  fumigation  with  sulphurous  acid ; 
but  the  latter  process  is  inadmissible  with  certain  colored 
stuffs.  Iron  mould  or  rust  stains  may  be  taken  out  almost 
instantaneously  with  a  strong  solution  of  oxalic  acid.  If  the 
stain  is  recent,  cream  of  tartar  will  remove  it.*  The  mixture 
of  rust  of  iron  and  grease  forming  compound  spots  or  stains, 
is  an  example  of  this  kind,  and  requires  two  distinct  opera- 
tions ;  first  the  removal  of  the  grease,  and  then  of  the  rust, 
by  the  means  above  indicated.  Mud,  especially  that  of  cities, 
is  a  compound  of  vegetable  remains,  and  of  ferruginous  mat- 
ter in  a  state  of  black  oxide.  Washing  with  pure  water,  fol- 
lowed, if  necessary,  with  soaping,  will  take  away  the  vegeta- 
ble juices  ;  and  then  the  iron  may  be  removed  with  cream  of 
tartar,  which  itself  must,  however,  be  well  washed  out.  Ink- 
stains,  when  recent,  may  be  taken  out  by  washing,  first  with 
pure  water,  next  with  soapy  water,  and  lastly  with  lemon 
juice ;  but  if  old,  they  must  be  treated  with  oxalic  acid.f 
Stains  occasioned  by  smoke,  or  by  sauces  browned  in  a  frying 
pan,  may  be  supposed  to  consist  of  a  mixture  of  pitch,  black 


*  Undiluted  muriatic  acid  will  also  remove  iron  mould  or  rust  stains,  ink  spots, 
&c,  but  immediate  and  thorough  washing  is  necessary  after  the  acid  has  been  ap- 
plied. The  spots  or  stains  will  be  removed  by  the  acid  in  about  half  a  minute.  If 
the  acid  is  diluted  it  will  rot  the  goods,  and  fail  in  effecting  the  purpose.  With 
the  pure  acid,  however,  and  thorough  washing,  the  finest  muslin  will  not  be  in- 
jured. 

t  The  clear  solution  of  chloride  of  lime,  diluted  with  twice  its  bulk  of  water, 
will  effectually  and  expeditiously  remove  stains  from  prints  and  printed  paper. 
Instead  of  the  ordinary  process  which  is  expensive  and  tedious,  first  soak  the 
print  in  clear  water,  till  it  lies  smooth  ;  then  remove  it  into  a  dish,  large  enough 
to  hold  it  flat,  filled  with  the  solution  diluted  as  above— the  stains  will  disappear 
in  a  few  minutes,  soak  again  in  clear  water,  to  free  it  from  the  chloride  of  lime, 
and  dry  it  between  sheets  of  blotting-paper.  By  this  process  we  have  bleached 
twelve  prints,  and  letter-press  belonging  to  an  expensive  book,  which  had  been 
damaged  by  rain  and  sea  water. 


SCOURING. 


439 


oxide  of  iron,  empyreumatic  oil,  and  some  alkaline  matters 
dissolved  in  pyroligneous  acid,  and  even  the  empyreumatic 
oils  in  a  great  measure  ;  the  essence  of  turpentine  will  re- 
move the  rest  of  the  oils  and  all  the  pitchy  matter  ;  then  ox- 
alic acid  may  be  used  to  discharge  the  iron.  Coffee  stains  re- 
quire a  washing  with  water,  with  a  careful  soaping,  at  the 
temperature  of  120  F.,  followed  by  sulphuration.  The  two 
latter  processes  may  be  repeated  two  or  three  times.  Choco- 
late stains  may  be  removed  by  the  same  means,  and  more 
easily. 

As  to  those  stains  which  change  the  color  of  the  cloth,  they 
must  be  corrected  by  appropriate  chemical  re-agents  or  dyes. 
When  black  or  brown  cloth  is  reddened  by  an  acid,  the  stain 
is  best  counteracted  by  the  application  of  water  of  ammonia. 
If  delicate  silk  colors  are  injured  by  soapy  or  alkaline  matters, 
the  stains  must  be  treated  with  colorless  vinegar  of  moderate 
force.*  An  earthy  compound  for  removing  grease  spots  is 
made  as  follows  : — 

Take  fullers'-earth,  free  it  from  all  gritty  matter  by  elutriation  with  water;  mix 
with  half  a  pound  of  the  earth  so  prepared,  half  a  pound  of  soda,  as  much  soap, 
and  eight  yolks  of  eggs  well  beat  up  with  half  a  pound  of  purified  ox-gall.  The 
whole  must  be  carefully  triturated  upon  a  porphyry  slab ;  the  soda  with  the  soap 
in  the  same  manner  as  :olors  are  ground,  mixing  in  gradually  the  eggs  and  the 
ox-gall  previously  beat  together.  Incorporate  next  the  soft  earth  by  slow  degrees, 
till  a  uniform  thick  paste  bo  formed,  which  should  be  made  into  balls  or  cakes  of 
a  convenient  size  and  laid  out  to  dry. 

A  little  of  this  detergent  being  scraped  off  with  a  knife, 
made  into  a  paste  with  water,  and  applied  to  the  stain  will 
remove  it.  Purified  ox-gall  is  to  be  diffused  through  its  own 
bulk  of  water,  applied  to  the  spots,  rubbed  well  into  them 
with  the  hands  till  they  disappear,  after  which  the  cloth  is 
washed  with  soft  water.  It  is  the  best  substance  for  removing 
stains  on  woolen  cloths.f    The  re-distilled  oil  of  turpentine 


*  Lemon  juice  is  used  to  brighten  scarlet  cloth,  after  the  spots  or  stains  have 
been  removed. 

t  A  writer  in  the  London  Mechanic's  Magazine,  gives  the  following  method  of 
cleansing  cloth  from  grease : — "  This  process  consists  in  washing  the  cloth  in 
warm  water  to  deprive  it  of  paste  or  gum,  then  to  impregnate  it  with  a  mixture 


440 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


may  also  be  rubbed  upon  the  dry  cloths  with  a  sponge  or  a 
tuft  of  cotton,  till  the  spot  disappears  ;  but  it  must  be  imme- 
diately afterwards  covered  with  some  plastic  clay  reduced  to 
powder.  Without  this  precaution  a  cloud  would  be  formed 
round  the  stain,  as  large  as  the  part  moistened  with  the  tur- 
pentine. Oxalic  acid  may  be  applied  in  powder  upon  the 
spot  previously  moistened  with  water,  well  rubbed  on,  and 
then  washed  off  with  pure  water.  Sulphurous  acid  is  best 
generated  at  the  moment  of  using  it.  If  the  cloths  be  much 
stained,  they  should  be  suspended  in  an  ordinary  fumigating 
chamber  (such  as  is  described  in  chapter  V.,  Part  II).  For 
trifling  stains,  the  sulphur  may  be  burned  under  the  wide  end 
of  a  small  card  or  paper  funnel,  whose  upper  orifice  is  applied 
near  the  cloth.* 

Mr.  Rene  Allaire,  of  Charlotte  street,  Fitzroy-square,  Lon- 
don, dyer  and  cleaner,  obtained  a  patent,  in  April,  1844,  for 
"improvements  in  cleansing  gentlemen's  garments."  The 
object  of  the  invention  is  the  use  of  certain  apparatus  for  ap- 
plying the  heat  of  steam  for  cleansing  gentlemen's  garments, 
and  removing  grease,  tar,  or  oil  spots  ;  and  also  for  drying 
garments  which  have  been  cleaned  by  washing. 

The  apparatus  consists  of  hollow  shapes,  suitable  for  re- 
ceiving the  garments  upon  them,  and  made  steam  tight. 
These  shapes,  on  steam  being  admitted  into  them,  will  not 
only  dry  a  washed  and  wet  garment,  but,  at  the  same  time, 
any  grease  or  oil  spots  will  be  removed ;  the  surface  of  the 
fabric  is  then  brushed,  and,  if  desired,  the  nap  may  be  slightly 
improved  with  soft  sharp  wire  cards. 

Fig.  21,  is  a  back  view,  and  fig.  22,  a  vertical  section  of  a 
hollow  shape  for  a  coat.  The  arm,  a,  is  moveable,  and  is 
first  introduced  into  one  sleeve  of  the  coat,  after  which  the 
coat  is  placed  on  the  hollow  shape,  and  the  arm  is  fastened  in 


of  fullers'-earth,  potash,  or  other  alkaline  material,  and,  thus  prepared,  to  suspend 
it  in  a  tight  box  or  receiver  and  subject  it  to  the  action  of  a  jet  of  steam.  When 
withdrawn,  it  is  thrown  into  the  water  and  passed  between  two  cylinders  to  clean 
it.  The  cloth,  in  this  process,  receives  no  fulling,  and  by  means  of  a  small 
boiler,  which  costs  but  little,  a  large  amount  of  work  can  be  rapidly  performed." 
*  See  Bleaching,  chapters  I.,  II.,  III.,  IV.  and  V.,  Part  II. 


SCOURING. 


441 


its  place  by  the  means  Fig.  21.  Fig.  22. 

represented  in  the  en- 
larged sectional  view, 
fig.  23.  In  the  upper 
end  of  the  arm,  a,  is  a 
groove,  furnished  with 
suitable  packing,  to  re- 
ceive the  end  of  the 
stump  b  ;  the  arm  and 
stump  are  secured  to- 
gether by  a  rod,  c,  with  an  oblong  head,  which  is  passed  through 
suitable  openings  in  the  bars,  d,  e,  (fixed  in  the  end  of  the 
arm  and  stump,)  and  turned  partly  round,  to  prevent  the 
return  of  the  head  ;  the  rod,  c,  is  then  firmly  retained  in  its 
position,  by  screwing  up  the  nut,  f,  upon  the  rod,  g,  which  is 
connected  to  the  rod,  c  ;  to  release  the  arm,  a,  the  nut,  /,  is 
turned  partly  round,  so  to  ad-  Fig.  23.  Fig.  24.  Fig.  25. 
mit  of  its  oblong  head  being 
drawn  through  the  bar,  e. 
Steam  is  admitted  into  the 
apparatus  through  the  pipe, 
a,  and  the  water  resulting 
from  its  condensation,  is  drawn 
ofT  from  the  body  of  the  shape 
by  the  cock,  A,  from  one  arm 
by  the  cock,  i,  and  from  the  other  arm  by  the  opening  through 
which  the  rod,  g,  passes,  when  it  is  allowed  to  escape  by  un- 
screwing the  nut,/:  the  air  is  permitted  to  escape  from  the 
apparatus,  on  the  admission  of  the  steam,  through  the  cocks, 
h,  i,  and  through  a  small  groove  in  the  face  of  the  nut;  /, 
corresponding  with  the  hole  in  the  end  of  the  arm. 

Fig.  24,  is  a  side  view,  and  fig.  25,  a  front  view  of  an  ap- 
paratus to  be  inserted  into  the  legs  of  trousers.  Steam  is  in- 
troduced into  it  through  the  pipe,  a,  and  the  water  is  drawn 
off  by  the  cock,  h,  through  which  also  the  air  is  allowed  to 
escape,  on  the  admission  of  steam. 

56 


PART  SIXTH. 

DYEING  and  calico-printin&. 


CHAPTER  I. 

GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES,  MOR- 
DANTS, MADDERING,  ETC. 

Having  already,  in  Part  III.,  treated  extensively  of  mor- 
dants, it  is  not  necessary  that  we  should  say  much  upon  the 
subject  here. 

The  causes  which  determine  the  combination  of  the  mor- 
dant with  the  fabric  are  either  physical  or  chemical.  Among 
the  first,  the  impression  presents  defects  arising  from  the  fab- 
ric, the  engraving,  the  color,  and  the  pressure  exercised  while 
printing.  The  more  regular  and  fine  the  texture  of  the  fab- 
ric, the  more  perfect  the  impression  ;  if,  however,  the  texture 
is  too  close,  the  mordant  cannot  penetrate  thoroughly,  but 
remains  on  the  surface  in  scales,  which  partially  peel  off,  and 
only  gives,  upon  dyeing,  dull  and  unequal  colors. 

With  regard  to  the  engraving  and  pressure,  what  we  are 
about  to  state  concerning  cylinders  applies  equally  to  block- 
printing.  If  the  engraving  on  the  cylinder  is  not  of  equal 
depth  throughout,  unequal  shades  will  be  produced.  The 
cause  of  this  defect  has  been  turned  to  advantage,  in  order  to 
obtain  two  different  shades  with  a  single  cylinder  and  color  ; 
it  is  sufficient,  for  example,  in  order  to  produce,  with  the  same 
cylinder,  red  and  pink,  to  engrave  those  parts  which  are  to 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS.  443 

produce  the  latter  tint  less  deep  than  those  which  are  to  pro- 
duce the  red.  As  this  kind  of  design,  which  is  very  difficult 
to  engrave,  furnishes  for  the  lighter  shades  very  little  color,  it 
is  almost  impossible  to  obtain  them  uniform  and  without  spots 
or  inequalities,  which  is  more  perceptible  after  the  brighten- 
ing process  ;  it  is  therefore  chiefly  employed  for  deep  blues, 
&c.  The  manner  of  engraving  also  greatly  influences  the 
intensity  of  the  colors.  Bitten  and  outlines  always  produce 
deeper  shades  than  what  is  technically  called  chalk  engrav- 
ing, as  the  latter  takes  up  less  color  than  the  others. 

The  speed  at  which  the  cylinder  is  driven  must  also  be 
taken  into  consideration,  as  the  faster  it  revolves  the  lighter 
the  shades,  because  it  deposits  less  color  upon  the  fabric.  If 
the  pressure  upon  the  roller  is  too  great,  the  color  is  not  fixed 
upon  the  fabrics,  and  produces,  on  dyeing,  unequal  shades  ; 
if,  on  the  other  hand,  the  pressure  be  too  light,  the  same  de- 
fect is  produced,  but  from  a  different  cause,  as  in  the  latter 
case,  the  color  merely  touches  the  fabric,  and  does  not  pene- 
trate, but  remains  on  the  surface,  and  ultimately  falls  off. 

This  method  of  printing  is  subject  also  to  another  very  se- 
rious inconvenience,  that  of  producing  unequal  shades, 
arising  from  the  action  of  the  pressure  cylinder  upon  the  en- 
graved cylinder  never  being  perfectly  uniform  ;  and  this  de- 
fect, which  may  be  avoided  by  great  pressure,  appears  on  the 
contrary  in  all  its  force  when  the  pressure  is  too  light. 

Hence  we  see  the  importance  of  uniform  pressure,  in  order 
to  obtain  a  uniformity  of  shade.  This  defect  in  printing  may 
be  ascertained  by  examining  both  selviges  of  the  fabric, 
which  ought  to  be  precisely  similar ;  if  one  is  of  a  deeper 
shade  than  the  other,  the  pressure  is  not  uniform. 

The  defects  arising  from  the  color  depend  upon  its  thick- 
ness and  the  nature  of  the  mordant.  If  the  color  is  too  thick, 
it  cannot  enter  into  the  lines  of  the  engraving ;  if  too  thin,  it 
runs  and  spoils  the  design  :  a  medium  between  these  must 
be  found,  which  long  experience  alone  can  teach,  and  which 
varies  not  only  with  each  kind  of  fabric  (the  color  being  thin- 
ner in  proportion  as  the  texture  is  fine),  but  also  with  each 
kind  of  design  ;  for  the  more  the  design  is  charged,  the  thin- 


444 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ner  the  color  must  be ;  for  this  reason,  designs  printed  on  a 
colored  ground,  can  only  be  well  done  with  gum  colors,  as 
those  with  starch  cannot,  without  being  decomposed,  be  di- 
luted beyond  a  certain  limit,  which  is  not  adapted  to  obtain 
the  desired  object. 

The  substances  generally  employed  as  thickeners  are  the 
following : — 

1.  British  Gum  (roasted  starch). 

2.  Calcined  potato  starch. 

3.  China-clay,  mixed  with  gum  arabic  or  gum  Senegal. 

4.  Dextrine. 

5.  Gum  arabic. 

6.  Gum  Senegal. 

7.  Gum  tragacanth. 

8.  Pipe-clay,  mixed  with  gum  arabic  or  gum  Senegal. 

9.  Rice  starch. 

10.  Salep. 

11.  Sago,  common  and  torrefied. 

12.  Sulphate  of  lead,  mixed  with  gum  arabic  or  gum  Senegal. 

13.  Wheat  starch. 

Colors  thickened  with  gum  have  the  defect  of  producing, 
during  printing,  a  great  deal  of  froth,  which,  if  not  removed 
as  fast  as  it  forms,  becomes  fixed  upon  the  fabric,  and  only 
produces  feeble  colors,  as  it  contains  but  little  mordant. 
Starch  colors  froth  up  very  little,  and  this  may  be  easily 
prevented  by  adding  a  little  sulphate  of  lead,  which  appears 
to  act  in  dividing  the  mass.  The  thickeners  also  exercise 
respectively  a  peculiar  action  upon  the  mordants :  thus,  a 
color  which,  thickened  with  starch  or  flour,  is  very  deep,  is 
less  so  when  thickened  with  gum  or  roasted  starch  ;  this  lat- 
ter substance,  in  dyeing,  gives  less  brilliant  shades  than 
starch  or  gum.  Gum  tragacanth,  dextrine,  salep,  and  sugar, 
act  precisely  in  the  same  manner,  and  produce  brilliant 
colors. 

The  physical  causes  of  the  defects  occasioned  by  the  dry- 
ing of  the  pieces  after  printing,  arise  from  excess  or  deficiency 
of  heat,  and  the  stagnation  of  the  air.  The  drying  must 
take  place  as  rapidly  as  possible,  in  order  to  prevent  the  co- 
lors from  spreading  upon  the  fabric,  and  spoiling  the  design ; 
and,  for  this  purpose,  the  stoves  are  usually  heated  to  30° 


t 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS.  445 

Reaumur,*  in  order  to  dry  the  pieces  directly.  Care  must, 
however,  be  taken  not  to  exceed  that  temperature,  which  is 
known  by  experience  to  be  the  best  for  mordants,  especially 
for  the  aluminous  ones  ;  as,  by  that  means,  the  colors  might 
become  incrusted,  and  fall  from  the  fabric,  which  is  particu- 
larly the  case  with  those  prepared  with  gum.  A  less  degree 
of  heat  is  maintained  when  the  cylinders  are  charged  with 
very  strong  iron  mordants,  or  steam  colors,  and  especially 
ground  colors,  which  are  the  more  brilliant  the  more  slowly 
they  are  dried. 

The  air  must  be  renewed  as  often  as  possible  in  the  stoves, 
in  order  to  carry  off  the  vapors  of  water  and  acid  which  are 
disengaged  from  the  printed  pieces ;  as  the  former  might  spoil 
the  design  by  damping  it,  and  the  latter  by  transforming  the 
mordant  into  an  acetate,  which  would  not  combine  with  the 
fabric,  and  would  therefore  produce  white  spots.    The  same 


*  The  atmosphere  of  the  printing  shop  should  never  be  allowed  to  cool  under 
65°  or  70°  F. ;  and  it  should  be  heated  by  proper  stoves  in  cold  weather,  but  not 
rendered  too  dry.  The  temperature  and  moisture  should  therefore  both  be  regu- 
lated with  the  aid  of  thermometers  and  hydrometers,  as  they  exercise  a  great  in- 
fluence upon  all  the  printing  processes,  and  especially  upon  the  combination  of  the 
mordant  with  the  cloth.  In  the  course  of  the  desiccation,  a  portion  of  the  acetic 
acid  evaporates  with  the  water,  and  subacetates  are  formed,  which  combine  with 
the  goods  in  proportion  as  the  solvent  principle  escapes ;  the  water,  as  it  evaporates, 
carries  off  acetic  acid  with  it,  and  thereby  aids  the  fixation  of  bases.  These  re- 
marks are  peculiarly  appropriate  to  delicate  impressions  by  the  cylinder  machine, 
where  the  printing  and  drying  are  both  rapidly  effected.  In  the  lapis  lazuli  style, 
the  strong  mordants  are  apt  to  produce  patches,  being  thickened  with  pipe-clay 
and  gum,  which  obstruct  the  evaporation  of  the  acids.  They  are  therefore  apt  to 
remain,  and  to  dissolve  a  portion  of  the  mordants  at  their  immersion  in  the  blue 
vat,  or  at  any  rate  in  the  dung  bath.  In  such  a  case,  a  hot  and  humid  air  is  in- 
dispensable, after  the  application  of  the  mordants,  and  sometimes  the  goods  so  im- 
pregnated must  be  suspended  in  a  damp  chamber.  To  prevent  the  resist  pastes 
becoming  rapidly  crusty,  substances  apparently  useless  are  mixed  with  them,  but 
which  act  beneficially  by  their  hygrometric  qualities,  in  retarding  the  desiccation. 
Oil  also  is  sometimes  added  with  that  view.  It  is  often  observed  that  goods 
printed  upon  the  same  day,  and  with  the  same  mordant,  exhibit  inequalities  in 
their  tints.  Sometimes  the  color  is  strong  and  decided  in  one  part  of  the  piece, 
while  it  is  dull  and  meager  in  another.  The  latter  has  been  printed  in  too  dry  an 
atmosphere.  In  such  circumstances  a  neutral  mordant  answers  best,  especially 
if  the  goods  be  dried  in  a  hot  flue,  through  which  humid  vapors  are  in  constant 
circulation. —  Ure. 


446 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


observations  apply  to  the  stretching,  in  which  the  pieces  are 
hung  up  for  several  days  after  printing,  before  dunging,  in 
order  to  combine  the  mordant  with  the  fabric ;  the  tempera- 
ture must  not  exceed  10°  or  15°  Reaumur,  and  the  air  must 
be  sufficiently  damp,  that,  in  cooling,  the  pieces  may  be  fold- 
ed without  any  rustling ;  they  must  not,  however,  be  too 
damp,  as  in  that  case  the  mordant  would  run.  A  certain 
degree  of  humidity,  which  may  be  known  by  experience,  and 
which  can  be  ascertained  by  a  hydrometer,  is  indispensable  to 
the  union  of  the  mordants  with  the  fabric,  particularly  when 
they  have  a  base  of  iron,  tin,  iron  and  alumina,  or  tin  and 
alumina. 

The  action  of  the  air  upon  the  fabrics,  while  hanging  to 
dry,  is  chemical,*  although  produced  by  physical  causes :  in 
effect,  the  damp  air  penetrates  the  stratum  of  color,  softens  it, 
and  carries  off  the  acetic  acid  of  the  mordant,  leaving  the 
alumina  with  which  it  was  chemically  combined,  but  not  yet 
in  combination  with  the  fabric,  as  it  only  combines  therewith 
by  a  suitable  degumming  operation,  without  which  only  dull 
and  feeble  colors  are  produced. 

At  the  degumming  operation,  the  purely  physical  causes 
which  influence  the  combination  of  the  mordant  with  the 
fabric,  cease ;  they  are  so  closely  allied  to  the  chemical 
causes,  that  it  is  only  by  a  long  and  persevering  study  of 
their  action  that  the  point  where  the  former  end,  and  the 
latter  begin,  can  be  ascertained.  It  appears  that  the  de- 
gumming operation  acts  in  a  different  manner,  according  to 
whether  the  pieces  are  submitted  thereto  immediately  after 
printing,  or  after  hanging  to  dry  for  forty  or  fifty  hours. 

The  action  is  chemical  and  mechanical ;  chemical  in  the 
first  instance,  because,  if  chalk  or  some  other  carbonate  be 
not  added  to  the  dung-bath  in  sufficient  quantity  to  saturate 
all  the  acid  of  the  mordant,  the  latter  will  detach  itself  from 
the  fabric,  and  become  dissolved  in  the  bath,— mechanical, 
because  it  facilitates  the  combination  of  alumina,  either 
pure  or  in  the  state  of  a  sub-sulphate,  with  the  surface  of 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


447 


the  threads  of  the  fabric.  This  assertion  is  confirmed  by 
the  fact,  that  the  centre  of  almost  all  dyed  threads  remains 
perfectly  white,  or  nearly  so,  the  coloring  matter  scarcely 
ever  going  beyond  the  surface.* 

In  the  second  case,  all  the  acetic  acid  being  separated  from 
the  mordant,  the  dung  only  is  employed ;  the  action  of  which 
is,  probably,  merely  mechanical. 

The  mechanical  action  of  the  dunging  is  not  solely  con- 
fined to  the  union  of  the  alumina  with  the  fabric  by  render- 
ing it  insoluble  ;  but  it  also  carries  off  a  portion  of  the  mor- 
dant not  combined  with  the  fabric  ;  and  likewise  dissolves 
the  thickening  matter,  which  contains  a  considerable  quan- 
tity of  it.f  For  this  reason,  the  degumming  operation  may 
be  performed  with  equal  advantage  either  with  bran,  dung, 
or  even  by  running  water  alone  :  this  latter,  which  acts  very 
slowly,  especially  in  winter,  is  used  chiefly  for  light  colors, 
prepared  with  gum  or  torrified  starch ;  it  has,  besides,  the 
disadvantage  of  allowing  the  mordant,  which  flies  off  from 
the  impression,  to  fall  upon  the  white  parts  of  the  piece  and 
stain  them,  if  the  least  fold  or  crease  should  be  formed. 

If  there  were  no  other  action  in  the  operation  of  degum- 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  III.,  article  Union  of  Cotton  with  Coloring  Matter. 

t  One  process  for  effecting  the  complete  removal  of  the  unprecipitated  mordant 
consists  in  simply  drawing  the  dried  goods  through  a  warm  emulsion  of  cow-dung 
and  water.  The  emulsion  is  usually  contained  in  two  stone  cisterns,  each  about 
six  feet  long,  by  three  feet  wide  and  four  feet  deep  :  that  in  one  cistern  contains 
about  two  gallons  of  dung,  to  the  cistern-full  of  hot  water ;  that  in  the  second 
contains  only  half  this  proportion  of  dung.  The  cloth,  on  being  taken  from  the 
ageing  room,  is  first  drawn  pretty  quickly  through  the  emulsion  containing  most 
dung,  and  immediately  afterwards  through  the  other ;  the  cisterns  being  usually 
placed  end  to  end,  to  allow  the  cloth  to  be  conducted  directly  from  the  first  to  the 
second.  The  time  of  immersion,  the  temperature  of  the  mixture,  and  the  number 
of  pieces  which  may  be  passed  through  a  given  quantity  of  dung  and  water,  de- 
pend entirely  on  the  state  and  quality  of  the  mordants,  and  on  the  nature  of  the 
thickening  paste  by  which  the  mordants  are  applied.  A  piece  of  cotton  with  a 
mordant  which  has  a  strong  acid  requires  a  longer  time  than  a  piece  the  mordant 
on  which  has  a  weak  acid ;  and  when  the  thickening  paste  for  a  mordant  is  flour 
or  starch,  a  higher  temperature  is  required  than  when  British  gum  or  common 
gum  is  used.  The  usual  temperature  of  the  dung  emulsion  is  160°  or  180°  F. — 
Parnell. 


448 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ming  than  that  just  pointed  out,  one  would  be  led  to  imagine 
that  the  pieces  would  be  perfectly  dyed  in  the  madder  bath, 
without  degumming,  as  the  madder  possesses  the  same  prop- 
erties as  the  dung,  which  are  all  that  are  requisite  for  carry- 
ing off  the  thickening  matter  and  the  excess  of  mordant,  and 
for  allowing  that  portion  which  remains  upon  the  fabric  to 
become  permanently  fixed ;  but  it  is  not  so ;  the  madder- 
dyed  pieces  never  give  good  results,  unless  previously  de- 
gummed  ;  feeble  colors,  and  imperfect  and  stained  designs, 
are  produced.  This  circumstance,  contrary  in  appearance  to 
the  theory  which  has  now  been  adduced  from  facts,  is  easily 
explained,  on  comparing  the  action  of  the  dung-bath  with 
that  of  the  madder-bath.  As  the  pieces  are  put  into  the  dye- 
bath  while  it  is  in  a  cold  state,  and  before  the  mucilage  has 
become  dissolved,  the  thickened  colors,  being  diluted  without 
being  dissolved,  are  detached  by  the  movement  communi- 
cated to  the  pieces,  and  carry  of!  nearly  all  the  mordant  they 
contained ;  while,  by  the  dunging  operation,  nearly  all  the 
mordant  is  fixed  in  the  fabric,  when  the  bath  is  sufficiently 
hot  to  carry  off  rapidly  the  thickening  matter  dissolved  there- 
in ;  and,  moreover,  all  the  excess  of  mordant  which,  in  the 
dunging  operation,  is  rendered  insoluble,  and  carried  off  by 
the  animal  and  vegetable  mucilage,  not  meeting  with  that  of 
the  madder  in  solution,  which  would  also  take  it  up,  falls 
back  upon  the  fabric,  combines  therewith  and  stains  it.  The 
six  following  experiments  confirm  this  theory  : — 

A  piece  of  ordinary  calico,  which  had  been  printed  about  a 
week  with  an  aluminous  mordant,  thickened  with  starch,  was 
divided  into  six  equal  parts,  of  about  8  inches  long  by  4  wide, 
and  treated  as  follows  : — 

No.  I, — Degummed,  at  a  temperature  of  12°  Reaumur,  in  a  dung-bath,  prepared 
12  hours  previous,  with  500  grammes  of  dung  to  4  quarts  of  water. 

No.  2, — Degummed  also  in  a  similar  bath,  but  heated  to  50°  Reaumur. 

No.  3, — Was  placed,  without  degumming,  at  a  temperature  of  12°  Reaumur, 
in  a  madder-bath  composed  of  32  grammes  of  madder,  of  the  best  quality,  to  4 
quarts  of  water. 

No.  4, — Was  placed,  without  degumming,  in  a  madder-bath,  similar  to  No.  3, 
which  had  been  prepared,  in  a  cold  state,  12  hours  previously. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


449 


No.  5, — Was  placed,  without  degumming,  at  30°  Reaumur,  in  a  bath  composed 
of  64  grammes  of  madder  and  125  grammes  of  dung,  to  4  quarts  of  water. 

No.  6' — Was  degummed  in  water  only,  at  12°  Reaumur,  and  dyed  like  No.  3. 

Nos.  1,  2,  and  6,  after  being  degummed,  were  beaten,  washed,  and  then  dyed 
separately,  in  a  similar  manner  to  No.  3.  With  the  six  pieces,  the  dye-bath  was 
raised  in  three-quarters  of  an  hour  to  80°  Reaumur,  at  which  temperature  it  re- 
mained during  15  minutes ;  they  were  afterwards  soaped,  then  brightened,  and 
soaped  a  second  time. 

Results. — Nos,  1,  and  2,  were  equal  in  beauty  ;  in  No.  3. 
the  impression  was  imperfect,  and  the  ground  stained  ;  in 
No.  4,  the  tint  was  as  uniform  as  No.  1,  but  with  only  half 
the  depth  of  color :  this  arose,  no  doubt,  from  the  mordant 
flying  off,  and  combining  with  the  madder,  thereby  rendering 
a  portion  of  its  coloring  matter  insoluble.  No.  5,  tint  so 
feeble  as  to  be  scarcely  perceptible,  caused  by  the  absorption 
of  the  coloring  matter  of  the  madder,  by  the  ligneous  part  of 
the  dung.    No.  6,  as  fine  as  No.  1. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  processes  of  degumming  most 
frequently  employed.  The  operation  of  dunging  is  ordinarily 
effected  between  30°  and  65°  Reaumur,  in  a  wooden  vat,  6 
feet  long,  and  5|  feet  in  width  and  depth,  filled  with  water ; 
in  which,  for  40  pieces  of  50  yards  each  and  £  wide,  about 
60  quarts  of  dung  are  dissolved,  which  is  at  the  rate  of  three 
pints  to  each  piece  ;  they  are  passed  through  this  for  a  quar- 
ter of  an  hour,  taken  out,  rinsed,  and  beaten  ;  they  are  then 
ready  for  dyeing,  or  to  be  again  passed  through  the  dung,  to 
ensure,  if  necessary,  a  more  successful  operation.  There  is 
no  disadvantage  in  employing  more  than  60  quarts  of  dung 
for  40  pieces  ;  but  a  less  quantity  must  not  be  employed,  as, 
in  that  case  the  mordant,  which  leaves  the  fabric,  not  finding 
the  mucilage  necessary  to  precipitate  it,  falls  back  upon  the 
fabric  and  stains  it. 

The  temperature  at  which  the  degumming  should  be  per- 
formed is  not  very  important,  provided  it  be  not  lower  than 
30°  Reaumur ;  for,  in  that  case,  its  action  would  be  very 
slow,  there  being  no  action  from  0°  up  to  10°,  as  the  mor- 
dant runs  upon  the  fabric  before  the  thickening  matter  is 
softened.  When  chalk  or  pipe-clay  is  added,  it  must  be  in 
the  proportion  of  500  grammes  for  each  piece. 

57 


450  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

The  time  necessary  for  the  pieces  to  remain  in  the  degum- 
ming  vat  is,  in  general,  a  quarter  of  an  hour ;  it  must,  how- 
ever, be  prolonged  in  proportion  to  the  temperature  of  the  bath. 

In  roller  vats,*  the  pieces  only  remain  two  minutes,  the 
action  of  the  bath  being  so  uniform  upon  the  whole  piece, 
that  the  effect  is  almost  instantaneous. 

The  same  observations  apply  to  degumming  with  bran  and 
with  the  dunging  salt ;  which  process  is  effected  upon  forty 
pieces,  with  15  kilog.  of  bran,t  or  with  250  grammes  of  salt ; 
care  being  taken  to  boil  the  first,  in  order  to  spread  its  mu- 
cilage throughout  the  bath,  and  to  dissolve  the  second.  With 
regard  to  the  degumming  by  cold  water,  which  is  the  most 
simple, — it  consists  in  plunging  the  pieces  in  running  water, 
keeping  them  well  spread  out,  and  leaving  them  there  until 
all  the  thickening  matter  is  removed  ;  they  are  then  care- 
fully washed  and  beaten,  before  dyeing :  but  this  is  neither 
an  economical  nor  a  certain  process ;  for  the  least  crease  in 
the  fabric  forms  a  stain,  because  the  excess  of  mordant  not 
being  carried  off  by  the  water,  becomes  deposited  upon  the 
fabric,  and  remains  attached  thereto. 

Degumming,  by  the  use  of  chalk  or  pipe-clay  only,  is 
chiefly  employed  with  iron  mordants ;  it  is  liable  to  cloud 
aluminous  mordants,  probably  because  it  combines  with 
them  in  small  quantities  ;  what  induces  this  belief  is,  that 
pinks  degummed  by  the  use  of  chalk  have  always  a  veiny 
tint. 

The  greater  the  quantity  of  mordant  employed,  the  less 
intimate  is  its  combination,  and,  in  consequence,  the  more 
easily  detached,  which  is  frequently  proved  when  carrying  on 
the  process  of  dunging  too  rapidly ;  in  that  case,  designs  with 
two  shades  of  the  same  color,  one  over  the  other,  lose  the 
more  intense  shade,  which  becomes  dull  and  lighter  than  the 
other ;  it  is  to  avoid  this  defect,  that  pieces  printed  with 
several  colors  are  degummed  twice,  and  even  three  times,  in 
succession. 


*  See  next  chapter,  Buchanan's  Patent,  and  Lecse's  Patent,  Plate  II. 
t  See  Appendix,  article  Bran. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS.  451 

On  coming  from  the  dunging-vat,  the  pieces  are  washed 
several  times  in  running  water,  beaten  for  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,  and  washed  again  to  remove  any  particles  of  mordant 
or  dung  which  might  adhere  to  them:  they  may  then  be 
dyed. 

Experience  has  shown,  that  the  degumming  by  dung 
gives  the  best  results ;  and  this  substance  being  very  sus- 
ceptible of  change,  according  to  the  kind  of  food  taken  by  the 
cows,  it  may  be  concluded  that  its  action  is  not  always  the 
same.  In  fact,  we  are  of  opinion  that  a  variety  of  accidents 
in  dyeing,  attributed  to  the  maddering,  are  owing  simply  to 
the  use  of  dung,  formed  from  matters  which  has  changed 
its  nature ;  and  as  long  as  this  substance  is  employed  for 
such  a  purpose,  the  process  will  always  be  liable  to  very  in- 
jurious variations.  It  is  therefore  necessary  to  remedy  this 
evil,  of  which  the  extent  may  now  be  appreciated. 

Although  the  objects  of  the  operation  of  dunging  are  suf- 
ficiently apparent,  says  Mr.  Parnell,  yet  the  precise  manner 
in  which  they  are  attained  is  involved  in  some  uncertainty. 
According  to  an  analysis  by  M.  Penot,  cow-dung  contains  the 
following  ingredients  in  100  parts  : — 


Woody  fibre   26  39 

Albumen   063 

Chlorophyl   028 

A  sweet  substance  :   0  93 

A  bitter  matter  i  0  74 

Chloride  of  sodium   0  08 

Sulphate  of  potash   0  05 

Sulphate  of  lime    .  .      .      .  0  25 

Carbonate  of  lime      ........  0*24 

Phosphate  of  lime  i   0*46 

Carbonate  of  iron   0  09 

Silica   014 

Water   6958 

(Loss     01 4) 


10000 

Maddering. — There  are  seven  principal  points  to  be  con- 
sidered in  the  process  of  maddering : 


452 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


1st. — The  quality  of  the  water  to  be  employed  in  dyeing. 

2nd. — The  quantity  of  water  to  be  used  with  a  given  pro- 
portion of  madder. 

3rd. — The  degree  of  temperature  most  favorable  to  the 
operation. 

4th. — The  length  of  time  necessary  for  the  dyeing  process. 
5th. — The  effect  produced  by  lowering  the  temperature  of 
the  bath. 

6th. — The  quantity  of  madder  necessary  for  the  saturation 
of  a  given  proportion  of  mordants. 

7th. — The  degree  to  which  it  is  necessary  to  heat  the  dye- 
bath,  in  order  to  extract  the  coloring  matter. 

I.  The  nature  of  the  water  to  be  employed  in  dyeing, 
should  be  carefully  studied,  as  it  materially  affects  certain 
colors.  Thus,  for  example,  perfectly  pure  water,  possessing 
no  re-agent,  is  the  best  for  all  madder  dyes,  with  respect  to 
the  brightness  of  the  colors,  except  violet.  Calcareous  water, 
on  the  contrary,  will  not  produce  such  fine  reds  and  pinks  as 
pure  water,  the  colors  produced  by  it  being  always  more  or 
less  dull  and  tinged  with  violet ;  but  it  produces  much  better 
violets  than  pure  water.  There  are  two  kinds  of  calcareous 
water ;  the  one  holding  sulphate  of  lime  in  solution,  and  the 
other  charged  with  carbonate  of  lime  :  the  former  cannot  be 
used,  as  it  tarnishes  the  shades,  and  precipitates  the  soap 
bath,  which  alone  gives  to  the  madder-dyed  colors  the  re- 
quired brightness :  the  latter  can  always  be  used,  whatever 
may  be  the  quantity  of  carbonate  with  which  it  is  charged. 

Water  charged  with  metallic  salts  must  not  be  used ;  ferru- 
ginous water,  for  instance,  if  employed,  would  decompose  the 
soap-bath,  tinge  all  the  aluminous  mordants  a  violet  hue,  and 
stain  the  white  parts  of  the  fabric. 

Sulphurous  water  is  likely  to  injure  and  stain  iron  mor- 
dants, provided  it  does  not  contain  any  metallic  salts  in  so- 
lution.* 

Experiments  have  been  made  to  test  the  action  of  certain 
substances  when  added  to  the  madder-bath,  and  the  result 


*  See  chapter  II.  Part  III.,  article  Purity  of  Water. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS.  453 

nas  been  unfavorable  in  all  cases ;  perhaps  these  substances 
have  been  added  in  too  great  quantity  in  proportion  to  the 
madder  employed.  The  experiments  made  were  as  fol- 
lows : — 

1.  A  mixture  of  31  grammes  of  nitric  acid,  at  40°  Baume,  and  a  quart  of  cold 
water,  was  thrown  upon  500  grammes  of  madder,  and  the  whole  well  stirred. 

2.  The  next  day,  186  grammes  of  this  mixture  were  diluted  with  8  quarts  of 
water;  the  specimen  dyed  therein  (with  all  the  precautions  taken,)  was  of  a 
lighter  red  than  another  piece  dyed  with  one-third  of  that  weight  (viz.  62  grammes) 
of  unprepared  madder. 

3.  On  increasing  the  quantity  of  acid,  it  was  found  to  remove  the  mordant,  and 
render  the  dyeing  operation  impossible. 

4.  31  grammes  of  olive  oil  soap,  and  62  grammes  of  madder,  only  produced  a 
very  feeble  color. 

5.  31  grammes  of  glue  dissolved  in  water,  and  62  grammes  of  madder,  produced 
but  a  dull  light  red.  This  result  was  surprising,  inasmuch  as  this  mixture  was 
recommended  by  Berthollet,  as  being  almost  as  favorable  to  the  operation  as  galls. 

6.  186  grammes  of  a  mixture  composed  of  31  grammes  of  Tuscany  potash,  500 
grammes  of  madder,  and  one  quart  of  water,  produced  a  very  light  pink  tinged 
with  lilac. 

7.  186  grammes  of  a  mixture  made  with  31  grammes  of  slacked  lime,  500 
grammes  of  madder,  and  one  quart  of  water,  produced  a  very  light  yellowish  pink. 

8.  186  grammes  of  a  mixture  made  with  500  grammes  of  madder,  and  one 
quart  of  water,  containing  31  grammes  of  sulphuric  acid,  at  66°  Baume,  furnished 
a  very  light  pink,  and  carried  off  the  mordant  in  several  places. 

9.  31  grammes  of  chalk,  and  62  of  madder,  furnished  a  very  light  dull  red. 

The  substances  were  added  to  the  dye-bath  in  large  quan- 
tities, in  proportion  to  the  weight  of  the  madder,  in  order  to 
be  able  to  judge  more  accurately  of  the  action  of  each  of 
them ;  but  their  comparative  utility  was  lost  sight  of,  as  at 
least  two  of  them,  viz.  chalk  and  glue,  are  known  to  be  use- 
ful. These  experiments  are  so  delicate,  that,  to  arrive  at 
definite  conclusions,  mere  experiments  in  the  laboratory  are 
not  sufficient, — they  must  be  made  on  a  large  scale. 

Besides,  many  circumstances  may  alter  the  action  of  the 
substances  added  to  the  madder-bath,  for  the  purpose  of  draw- 
ing from  it  the  greatest  possible  quantity  of  coloring  matter  ; 
at  least,  we  are  led  to  believe  this,  from  the  following  experi- 
ments made  for  the  purpose  of  discovering  in  what  state  galls 
are  most  advantageously  employed  in  maddering : — 

On  mixing  31  grammes  of  pounded  galls,  or  sumac,  with  62  grammes  of  mad- 


t 


454 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


der,  in  8  quarts  of  water,  the  alumina  mordants  dyed  therein  only  take  a  dull 
brown  color ;  while  if,  after  dunging  the  fabric,  it  is  passed  for  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  through  a  bath  at  80°  Reaumur,  made  with  the  same  quantity  of  galls,  and 
afterwards  dyed  with  the  same  quantity  of  madder  as  in  the  preceding  experiment, 
a  fine  red  is  obtained,  deeper  than  that  of  a  third  specimen,  dyed  in  the  same 
manner,  but  without  having  been  previously  galled.  By  adding  a  solution  of 
galls  to  the  mordant,  before  printing,  scarcely  any  mordant  remains  in  the  fabric 
after  dunging. 

It  may  be  concluded  from  these  facts,  that  the  galls  only 
exert  all  their  influence  on  the  coloring  matter  of  the  madder, 
when  combined,  before  dyeing,  with  the  mordant  previously 
fixed  in  the  fabric  by  degumming.  It  is  probable  that  in  the 
first  case,  the  galls  hindered  the  dyeing  operation  by  precipi- 
tating the  coloring  matter,  and  that  in  the  second,  they  facili- 
tated it  by  increasing  the  absorbent  properties  of  the  mordant. 
This  would  perhaps  explain  the  well  known  fact,  that  fabrics 
dyed  twice  are  always  of  a  deeper  and  brighter  color  than 
those  only  dyed  once,  although  the  same  quantity  of  madder 
be  employed.  In  the  third  case,  the  galls  prevented  the  mor- 
dant from  being  properly  fixed  in  the  fabric,  because  by  its 
infusion  it  precipitated  the  aluminous  salts.  Wheat  bran, 
coarsely  ground,  mixed  with  the  dye-bath,  in  equal  quantity 
to  the  madder,  will  produce  a  tint  of  not  half  the  depth  of  that 
obtained  with  the  same  quantity  of  madder  alone ;  on  the 
other  hand,  the  white  part  of  the  fabric  is  much  less  charged 
with  color,  provided  the  precaution  be  taken  of  washing  it  im- 
mediately on  coming  from  the  dye  ;  without  which,  the  color- 
ing matter  will  become  fixed  with  such  tenacity,  that  it  is  al- 
most impossible  to  separate  it.  Dung,  added  to  the  dye-bath, 
produces  the  same  effect  as  bran. 

II.  The  most  advantageous  quantity  of  water  to  be  em- 
ployed with  a  given  quantity  of  madder,  can  only  be  deter- 
mined by  approximation  ;  "  experience  shows,"  says  a  recent 
writer*  upon  this  subject,  "  that  30  quarts  are  necessary  for 
every  pound  of  ordinary  madder."  No  disadvantage  has  been 
found  to  arise,  either  from  increasing  or  diminishing  the  quan- 
tity of  madder,  relatively  to  this  quantity  of  water,  up  to  cer- 


*  M.  Giradin. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


455 


tain  limits,  beyond  which  the  coloring  matter  will  not  unite 
with  the  fabric,  as  it  is  carried  off  by  the  excess  of  water,  or 
retained  by  the  mucilage  of  the  madder,  which  prevents  it 
from  dissolving. 

III.  The  degree  of  heat  suitable  for  commencing  the  dye- 
ing operation,  is  a  matter  of  much  dispute  among  practical 
men ;  some  maintain  that  it  must  be  as  high  as  30°  or  40° 
Reaumur  ;  while  others,  who  form  the  majority,  contend  that 
it  is  better  to  dye  with  a  cold  bath  :  all,  however,  agree  that 
it  must  neither  be  down  to  0°,  nor  up  to  the  boiling  point.  In 
order  to  arrive  at  a  correct  c6nclusion  on  this  head,  the  follow- 
ing experiments  were  made  : — A  piece  of  calico,  perfectly 
bleached,  was  cut  into  pieces  of  about  16  inches  long,  and  ten 
wide.  All  these  pieces  were  immersed  together  in  pure  ace- 
tate of  alumina,  at  10°  Baume,  for  about  five  minutes,  pressed, 
wrung  by  hand,  and  hung  up  in  a  rather  moist  drying  appa- 
ratus at  15°  Reaumur,  for  two  nights  and  three  days.  The 
third  day  they  were  dunged  at  65°  Reaumur,  and  then  sever- 
ally dyed  in  baths,  prepared  in  a  copper  vat,  with  8  quarts 
of  pure  water,  and  31  grammes  of  the  best  madder,  and 
stirred  constantly,  during  the  dyeing,  with  a  small  fir  stick. 
The  temperature  of  each  bath  was  indicated  by  a  thermom- 
eter. 


No.  1  put  in  at  10°  R.  heated  in  1  hour  to  80°, 

and  taken  out. 
No.  2      "      20°      "      "      "  *f 
No.  3      "      30°      "      "      "  " 
No.  4      "      40°      "      "      "      "      S     Of  a  uniform  red,  but  a 
No.  5      «      50°      "      "      "      "       i      richer  color  than  the 


These  three  specimens 
were  of  a  uniform 
light  red  tint. 


No.  6  "  60°  B  «  «  «  j  three  preceding. 
No.  7      "      70°      "      "      «      «  Deeper  than  No.  6. 

No.  8      «      80°      "      «      "      "  The  same  tint  as  No.  6. 

These  experiments  prove  that  it  is  better  to  commence  the 
operation  above  30°  R.  than  under  it ;  this  fact  is  corrobo- 
rated by  practical  experience,  which  shows  that  great  econ- 
omy is  effected  in  the  madder  bath  by  raising  the  tempera- 
ture to  40°  R. ;  moreover,  that  the  most  advantageous  heat 
for  commencing  the  operation  is  70°  R.    It  is,  however,  to  be 


456 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


regretted  that  it  cannot  be  employed  on  a  large  scale  with 
facility,  as  the  workmen  are  not  able  to  fasten  the  pieces  to- 
gether, end  to  end,  at  so  high  a  temperature,  without  burning 
themselves ;  it  is  besides  probable  that  this  degree  of  tempe- 
rature would  produce  stains,  especially  for  designs  with  a 
ground ;  the  movement  of  the  piece  not  being  sufficiently 
rapid  to  plunge  all  parts  of  it  into  the  dye-bath  at  the  same 
time,  the  action  of  which  would,  no  doubt,  be  almost  instan- 
taneous. It  will  be  seen  presently  that  this  degree  (70°  R.) 
is  also  the  most  advantageous  temperature  at  which  to  stop 
the  operation  ;  lastly,  that  the  boiling  point,  far  from  being 
favorable  to  the  combination  of  the  coloring  matter  with  the 
mordant,  seems,  on  the  contrary,  to  separate  a  portion  of  that 
which  had  already  united  with  it. 

In  winter,  during  frost,  it  is  customary  to  make  the  mad- 
der-bath lukewarm,  because  it  is  impossible  to  dye  at  0°  R., 
as  the  coloring  matter  does  not  dissolve  properly.  If  the  bath 
is  too  cold  to  melt  the  small  icicles  adhering  to  the  pieces 
speedily  (which  must  always  be  carefully  avoided,  as  frost 
affects  the  mordants),  whitish  stains  will  be  produced 
wherever  they  existed. 

IV.  The  duration  of  the  operation  of  dyeing  varies  accord- 
ing to  the  colors  to  be  produced ;  it  is  generally  a  single  dip 
of  three  hours  for  reds,  violets,  and  browns,  and  two  dips,  of 
an  hour  and  a  half  each,  for  pinks,  the  fabrics  being  put  in 
at  20°  or  30°  R.,  which  temperature  is  raised  to  from  40°  to 
50°  R. 

V.  The  effect  of  lowering  the  temperature  of  the  dye-bath, 
has  been  ascertained  by  means  of  samples  prepared  as  in  the 
preceding  experiment.  The  madder-bath  was  heated,  in  a 
quarter  of  an  hour,  to  the  degree  indicated,  stirring  it  con- 
stantly;  it  was  then  removed  from  the  fire,  and  left  un- 
covered, for  twelve  hours,  in  stone  vessels  of  equal  size,  to 
cool ;  at  the  expiration  of  which  time,  the  bath  was  employed, 
as  in  the  preceding  experiments.  In  each  of  these  experi- 
ments, 31  grammes  of  the  best  madder  were  used.  The  fol- 
lowing were  the  results  obtained  : — 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


457 


No.  1  heated  to  10°  R.  and  left  at  that  temperature. " 

No.  2 

20° 

All  these 

No.  3 

i           3QO  C< 

(           ((           (C  << 

pieces  were 

No.  4 

40° 

>  of  the  same 

No.  5 

50° 

(        tt        ({  (( 

light  red 

No.  6 

60° 

c        tt        «     »  ifiL\ 

tint. 

No.  7 

70° 

<        tt        tt  it 

No.  8 

80° 

(         tt         a  tt 

This  piece 

did  not  take  the  color,  being  scarcely  stained. 


It  may  be  concluded  from  this,  that  the  dye-bath  may  be 
lowered  a  few  degrees  below  the  boiling  point,  without  the 
least  inconvenience  ;  but  it  is  not  so  at  80°  Reaumur,  as 
the  bath,  if  heated  to  that  degree,  and  afterwards  cooled, 
becomes  useless.  It  would  seem  that  the  coloring  matter 
then  becomes  insoluble  ;  at  any  rate  the  water  floating  upon 
the  madder*  is  -perfectly  limpid,  being  scarcely  tinged  with 
an  amber  tint. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  the  coloring  mat- 
ter which  disappears,  is  absorbed  by  the  ligneous  matter,  or 
retained  by  coagulated  matter ;  the  microscope  would  be  very 
useful  in  this  inquiry. 

VI.  The  proportion  of  madder  necessary  to  saturate  a 
given  quantity  of  aluminous  mordant,  can  only  be  ascer- 
tained with  correctness  when  the  coloring  matter  is  separa- 
ted, (as  this  varies  according  to  the  kind  of  madder,  and  even 
in  different  portions  of  the  same,  according  to  its  age,  its  de- 
gree of  dryness,  the  salts  it  contains,  and  the  treatment  it  has 
undergone,)  and  when  a  definite  combination  of  that  and  the 
alumina  has  been  effected.  This  is  believed  to  be  impossible, 
judging  from  the  eight  experiments  made  with  the  precau- 
tions above  mentioned,  excepting  that  an  aluminous  mordant 
of  less  strength  (2\°  Baume)  was  employed  in  order  to  ob- 
tain clearer  tints. 

The  experiments  were  begun  at  a  temperature  of  12°,  and 
were  heated  in  an  hour  to  80°  R.,  and  kept  at  that  tempera- 
ture for  fifteen  minutes  ;  the  pieces  were  then  soaped  for  a 
quarter  of  an  hour  at  65°  R.,  in  24  quarts  of  water,  with  64 


*  The  madder  is  precipitated  on  the  cooling  of  the  liquor. 

58 


458 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


grammes  of  white  soap,  then  brightened,  in  the  same  quan- 
tity of  water,  with  a  solution  of  tin  in  aqua  regia,  washed  in 
running  water,  and  soaped  as  before.  The  following  were 
the  results  obtained : — 

No.  1  31  grammes  of  madder     .      .  bright  pink. 

No.  2  64  "  "...  light  red. 

No.  3  95  "  "         .      .  intensely  bright  red. 

No.  4  126  "  «     .  deep  red. 

No.  5  157  "  "         .      .  little  more  intense  than  No.  4. 

No.  6  188  "  "...  one-third  deeper  than  No.  4. 

No.  7  250  "  "         .      .  little  deeper  than  No.  6. 

No.  8  500  "  „.      "...  one-fourth  deeper  than  No.  7. 

These  experiments  would  seem  to  prove  that  the  quantity 
of  madder  necessary  for  dyeing  a  piece  of  calico  about  50 
yards  long,  by  1  yard  wide,  a  fine  red  color,  is  about  76  lbs.  ; 
but  experience  demonstrates,  that  from  20  to  24  lbs.  suffice 
for  obtaining  the  deepest  red  ;  therefore,  in  these  experiment? 
all  the  coloring  matter  was  not  extracted  from  the  madder 
which  might  be  expected,  since  the  operation  was  performed 
in  one-sixth  of  the  time  usually  taken  when  working  on  a 
large  scale. 

Great  difficulty  is  experienced  in  saturating  the  aluminous 
mordants  with  coloring  matter,  if  indeed  they  are  ever  com 
pletely  saturated,  from  which  we  are  led  to  believe  that  a 
definite  combination  of  the  coloring  matter  and  the  alumina 
does  not  exist,  and  that  beyond  a  certain  limit,  the  intensity 
of  the  color  is  not  increased  in  proportion  to  the  quantity 
of  madder  employed  ;  this  is  proved  by  No.  8,  the  shade  of 
which  was  only  one-fourth  deeper  than  that  of  No.  7,  al- 
though the  dye-bath  was  charged  with  double  the  quantity  of 
madder. 

VII.  Experience  has  shown  that  the  more  the  dye  is  heat- 
ed beyond  a  given  temperature,  the  less  coloring  matter  is  ex- 
tracted, when  aluminous  mordants  are  employed,  and  the 
more  the  shade  is  deteriorated ;  but  mordants  of  iron,  tin, 
alumina  and  iron,  and  alumina  and  tin,  are  not  affected  by 
this  treatment.  These  facts  being  known,  the  latter  are  al- 
ways dyed  at  the  boiling  point,  and  the  former  at  65°  R.  as 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


459 


the  maximum  ;  pinks  are  always  dyed  at  from  40°  to  55°  R., 
their  tint  being  brighter  in  proportion  as  the  degree  at 
which  they  are  worked  is  less. 

In  order  to  ascertain  the  degree  at  which  the  coloring  mat- 
ter of  the  madder  begins  to  unite  with  the  aluminous  mor- 
dants, and  also  the  degree  at  which  it  unites  with  them  in  the 
largest  proportion,  the  following  experiments  were  made  with 
the  same  precautions  as  in  the  preceding  operations : — 

No.  1  immersed  at  a  temperature  of  13°  R.,  left  an  hour  in  the  bath,  continu- 
ally stirred,  and  then  taken  out,  was  scarcely  tinged  with  a  yellowish  tint. 
No.  2  immersed  at  13°  and  heated  in  an  hour  to  20°— same  tint  as  No.  1. 


No.  3  "  "  30°— a  fine  pink. 

No.  4  "  *  40° — pink  4  times  as  intense  as  No.  1. 

No.  5  "  "  50° — tint  twice  as  deep  as  No.  4. 

No.  6  "  "  60°— same  as  No.  5. 

No.  7  "  "  70°— a  much  deeper  tint  than  No.  6. 

No.  8  "  "  80°— same  tint  as  No.  5. 


It  is,  therefore,  at  13°  R.  that  the  coloring  matter  of  the 
madder  unites  with  fabrics  treated  with  the  aluminous  mor- 
dants, and  at  70°  R.  that  it  combines  therewith  in  greatest 
proportion  ;  this  degree  of  heat  is  therefore,  as  already  stated, 
the  most  advantageous  for  immersing  the  fabric  to  be  dyed. 
As  formerly  observed,  upon  raising  the  heat  to  the  boiling 
point,  a  portion  of  the  coloring  matter  which  had  become 
fixed  in  the  cloth,  will  be  separated  from  it ;  so  that  fabrics 
treated  with  the  aluminous  mordants  must  on  no  account  be 
dyed  at  as  high  a  heat  as  80°  R.  The  time  of  immersion 
may,  up  to  a  certain  point,  be  prolonged  instead  of  raising  the 
temperature ;  for  this  reason  pinks  take  a  longer  time  than 
any  other  color.  On  coming  from  the  dye,  the  pieces  are 
plunged  in  running  water  and  well  washed,  to  free  them  from 
the  coloring  matter  not  combined  with  the  mordant,  and 
which,  being  merely  deposited  upon  the  surface  of  the  fabric, 
would  stain  the  white  parts  if  suffered  to  remain. 

After  this  operation,  the  parts  of  the  fabric  which  are  in- 
tended to  be  left  white  are  still  pink ;  there  are  two  methods 
by  which  they  may  be  brought  to  their  former  whiteness  :  ac- 
cording to  the  first,  economy  must  be  sacrificed  to  the  beauty 
of  the  shades  ;  and  according  to  the  second,  the  beauty  of  the 


460  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

shades  to  economy.  The  first  is  the  method  pursued  in  Al- 
sace, and  the  second  in  Rouen.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the 
present  demand,  by  which  everything  is  required  cheap,  forces 
the  first  to  assimilate  to  the  latter. 

We  will  pass  over  the  method  of  bleaching  by  exposure  in 
the  open  air,  which  is  generally  abandoned  on  account  of  its 
long  duration* 

The  method  of  bleaching  in  Alsace,  consists  in  soaping  the 
pieces  at  50°  or  65°  R.,  brightening  them,  as  hereinafter  men- 
tioned, and  afterwards  boiling  them  once  in  soap.  In  sum- 
mer they  are  exposed  in  the  fields  for  a  shorter  or  longer  time, 
say  from  three  to  six  days,  according  to  the  fineness  of  the 
weather,  and  are  afterwards  dipped  and  soaped  at  the  boiling 
point ;  while  in  winter,  when  this  plan  cannot  be  adopted  on 
account  of  the  frost,  they  are  boiled  several  times  in  soap,  af- 
ter brightening,  until  perfectly  white,  which  requires  some- 
times four  successive  boilings  of  half  an  hour  each.  This 
treatment,  which  is  expensive,  is  used  for  small  designs  con- 
taining black  and  red,  or  black,  red,  and  pink,  which  designs 
can  only  acquire  the  beauty  peculiar  to  those  of  Alsace  by 
this  method. 

Pinks,  brightened  very  powerfully,  and  afterwards  soaped 
under  a  pressure  superior  to  that  of  the  atmosphere,  always 
present  a  perfect  white,  which  is  not  the  case  with  those  less 
brightened,  the  white  of  which  must,  nevertheless,  be  in  the 
highest  perfection,  in  order  not  to  tarnish  the  shade  of  the  de- 
sign, which  is  generally  printed  with  the  cylinder  or  roller, 
and  to  dye  afterwards  with  different  coloring  matters,  which 
adhere  to  all  those  parts  not  sufficiently  bleached. 

We  believe  the  action  of  the  soap  to  be  purely  chemical, — 
alkalies  possessing  the  property  of  dissolving  the  coloring  mat- 
ter of  madder,  but  not  however  without  altering  it ;  and  soap 
being  nothing  but  a  caustic  alkali,  the  action  of  which  has 
been  moderated,  by  combining  it  with  a  fatty  body,  which  re- 
tains the  coloring  matter  and  prevents  it  from  being  again 
taken  up  by  the  fabric.    This  fact  may  be  ascertained  with 


*  See  chapter  I.  Part  It. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


461 


certainty  by  decomposing  a  soap-bath,  which  has  been  well 
used,  by  means  of  an  acid, — the  fatty  acids  immediately 
ascend  to  the  surface,  tinged  with  orange ;  the  bath  having 
(from  red)  become  almost  colorless. 

It  may,  therefore,  be  admitted  that  the  action  of  the  soap, 
although  essentially  chemical,  is  also  in  a  degree  mechanical. 
Soap  possesses  another  advantage,  viz.,  that  of  giving  greater 
permanency  to  the  colors,  rendering  them  less  likely  to  be  at- 
tacked in  brightening,  and  above  all,  that  of  giving  them  a 
brilliancy  which  they  would  not  otherwise  acquire  ;  it  is  prob- 
able that  this  effect  is  owing  to  a  combination  of  fatty  acid, 
coloring  matter,  and  mordant. 

Exposure  to  the  open  air  oxidizes,  as  is  well  known,  the 
coloring  matter  ;  and  if  the  pieces  are  too  long  submitted  to 
its  action,  the  colors  grow  faint  and  dull,  and  would  even  en- 
tirely disappear  if  exposed  for  a  considerable  period. 

Attempts  have  been  made  to  render  this  treatment  more 
economical  by  using  hypochlorite  of  lime,  either  before  or  af- 
ter soaping  ;  which  in  summer  does  away  with  the  third  and 
last  soaping,  and  in  winter  with  all  the  operations  used  for 
bleaching  ;  besides,  by  this  method,  great  economy  of  time  is 
effected.* 

The  pieces  are  passed  through  the  hypochlorite  immedi- 
ately after  maddering,  after  the  first  soaping,  after  brighten- 
ing, and  either  before  or  after  the  third  soaping,  which  finishes 
the  operation. 

By  the  first  method,  the  reds  are  much  tarnished,  which 
happens  every  time  they  are  brought  in  contact  with  soluble 
salts  of  lime  ;  the  black  becomes  grayish-brown,  but  a  perfect 
white  is  obtained. 

By  the  second,  and  especially  by  the  third,  the  colors  are 
less  changed  than  by  the  first. 

The  fourth  is  the  only  one  which  gives  a  fine  white 
ground,  tarnishing  the  red  colors  so  little  that  it  may  be  em- 
ployed with  success  ;  a  better  result  still  is  obtained  by  sub- 
stituting hypochlorite  of  soda  for  hypochlorite  of  lime  ;  the 


*  See  page  213,  commencing  eighth  line  from  foot. 


462  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

I 

reds  are,  however,  never  so  brilliant  as  those  produced  by 
soap  alone. 

Hypochlorite  of  lime  possesses  every  advantage  for  bleach- 
ing violets  and  puces  ;  indeed  it  is  very  generally  employed 
for  that  purpose. 

The  action  of  hypochlorites  is  also  oxidizing,  but  more  ac- 
tive than  that  of  the  bases  of  those  salts  and  the  chlorine 
which  is  disengaged  therefrom  during  the  operation  upon  the 
coloring  matter  ;  and  for  this  reason  this  operation  should  be 
entrusted  to  experienced  hands.  Thus,  for  example,  by  pass- 
ing the  goods  for  too  great  a  length  of  time  through  hypo- 
chlorite of  lime,  the  iron  mordants  will  be  carried  off  by  the 
chlorine  :  the  black  and  violet  colors  becoming  faint ;  puce, 
which  is  composed  of  a  mordant  of  iron  and  alumina,  reddens 
by  the  dissolution  of  the  iron  mordant ;  mordants  of  alumina, 
on  the  contrary,  not  being  attacked  by  the  chlorine,  preserve 
all  their  intensity,  but  are  turned  brown  by  the  lime,  which 
is  the  base  of  the  salt. 

The  method  of  bleaching  practiced  at  Rouen,  consists  in  al- 
ternately passing  the  fabrics  through  hypochlorite  of  lime  and 
bran,  or  bran  and  soap.  The  bran*  acts  as  an  absorbent,  and 
acquires  a  red  color  as  the  white  parts  of  the  pieces  re-appear : 
it  does  not  alter  the  red  coloring  matter. 

We  have  seen  that,  after  dyeing,  the  pieces  are  passed 
through  bran  or  soap  before  undergoing  the  brightening  pro- 
cess. This  operation  merely  consists  in  the  action  of  acids  of 
greater  or  less  strength  upon  dyed  fabrics,  so  as  to  change  the 
brick-red  of  those  treated  with  aluminous  mordants  into  a 
bright  red,  and  the  black  color  of  those  treated  with  iron  mor- 
dants to  a  fine  violet. 

To  brighten  the  aluminous  mordants  for  reds,  a  solution  of 
tin  in  aqua  regia  is  employed ;  for  pinks,  a  solution  of  tin 
and  pure  nitric  acid,  or  a  compound  of  equal  weights  of  solu- 
tion of  tin  and  sulphuric  acid  ; — there  is  no  perceptible  differ- 
ence in  the  results  obtained  with  these  various  ingredients. 

Iron  mordants  are  brightened  with  sulphuric  acid,  or  with 


*  See  Appendix,  article  Bran. 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS. 


463 


a  solution  of  tin  ;  this  latter,  acting  more  promptly,  is  rarely 
used,  except  in  cases  where  these  mordants  are  combined  in 
the  design  with  aluminous  mordants,  the  tint  of  which  it  is 
desirable  to  preserve. 

In  order  to  brighten  the  aluminous  mordants,  the  pieces  are 
rapidly  plunged  in  a  bath  of  cold  water  at  10°  R.,  to  which 
is  added  a  solution  of  tin,  in  quantity  increasing  in  propor- 
tion to  the  rapidity  of  effect  and  lightness  of  the  shade  re- 
quired. With  regard  to  the  quantity  of  solution  to  be  em- 
ployed, the  temperature  of  the  wTater  must  be  noticed,  and  a 
less  quantity  added  in  proportion  to  an  increase  of  heat ;  the 
operation  proceeds,  and  the  goods  are  worked  for  two  or 
three  minutes ;  steam  is  then  gradually  introduced,  and  the 
bath  heated,  until  the  color  is  softened  to  the  shade  required. 
The  steam-cock  is  then  quickly  shut  off,  and  cold  water  in- 
troduced ;  after  which  the  goods  are  taken  out  and  washed 
in  running  water. 

The  object  of  these  precautions  is  to  prevent  the  colors 
from  clouding,  which  takes  place  when  the  brightening  bath 
does  not  act  uniformly  upon  the  whole  surface  of  the  goods  ; 
the  color  is  therefore  apt  to  become  clouded  if  the  brightening 
bath  be  heated  too  much  or  too  rapidly, — if  too  much  of  the 
solution  be  employed, — if  the  bath  be  not  well  stirred  before 
entering  the  goods,  or  if  the  goods  be  not  washed  immediately 
after  brightening. 

The  action  of  the  brightening  process  is  twofold,  as  it  acts 
upon  the  coloring  matter  and  also  upon  the  mordant  which 
fixes  it. 

The  coloring  matter  is  acted  upon  very  powerfully  by  the 
solution  of  tin  ;  nitric  acid  may  therefore  be  used,  in  combi- 
nation with  it.  From  this  it  may  be  conceived  that  the 
brightening  process  acts  by  oxidizing  the  coloring  matter, 
which  is  proved  by  the  yellow  tint  it  receives,  as  is  the  case 
with  all  organic  matters  containing  azote,  when  attacked  by 
nitric  acid. 

It  should  be  remarked,  that  when,  after  having  brightened 
and  soaped  the  maddered  pieces,  it  is  desired  again  to  oper- 
ate upon  them  in  order  to  soften  down  the  shades  and  render 


464 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


them  lighter,  very  strong  brightening  solutions  are  requisite  : 
it  appears  that  the  coloring  matters  acquire  great  fixity  by  the 
process  of  brightening.  This  fact  is  only  explained  by  a 
change  taking  place  in  the  nature  of  the  coloring  matter,  and 
analogous  no  doubt,  to  that  of  certain  salts  which  abandon 
the  last  traces  of  their  acid  or  base  with  greater  difficulty,  in 
proportion  to  the  presence  of  a  larger  quantity  of  base  or  acid. 

This  phenomenon  might  also  be  owing  to  a  triple  combina- 
tion of  coloring  matter,  alumina,  and  fatty  matter  (of  the 
soap),  which  would  not  take  place  until  after  the  brightening 
process.  What  confirms  this  latter  opinion  is,  that  mordants 
in  general,  and  especially  those  of  alumina,  after  being 
soaped,  cannot  be  again  dyed,  as  they  will  not  take  up  any 
more  coloring  matter  ; —  the  mordant  appears  completely 
saturated. 

When  designs  containing  two  reds — the  lighter  over  the 
deeper  one — are  brightened  too  much,  the  former  alone  re- 
mains, and  the  latter  disappears,  because  the  more  base  the 
alumina  mordants  contain,  the  less  affinity  they  have  for  the 
fabric. 

Iron  mordants  must  be  brightened  with  the  same  precau- 
tions as  those  of  alumina  ;  it  causes  them  to  assume  a  yel- 
lowish-brown tint ;  they  must  then  be  washed  in  running  wa- 
ter, and  immersed  in  a  bath  of  hypochlorite  of  potash.  The 
action  is  instantaneous,  owing  to  the  excess  of  alkali. 

Mordants  of  iron,  brightened  and  washed,  (but  not  soaped) 
and  then  maddered,  are  perfectly  fast,  if  the  action  of  the  acid 
has  not  been  carried  too  far, — for  in  that  case,  not  only  is 
the  coloring  matter  destroyed,  but  the  mordant  itself  is  carried 
off ;  thus  rendering  a  combination  of  that  and  the  coloring 
matter  impossible.  This  fact  proves  that  the  brightening 
process  acts  upon  the  mordant  as  well  as  the  coloring  matter. 
Iron  mordants,  like  those  of  alumina,  are  the  more  easily 
attacked  by  acids,  as  they  are  more  powerful  in  their  action. 
Immediately  after  the  brightening  process,  the  pieces,  what- 
ever may  be  their  mordant,  are  soaped,  finished,  and  then 
folded  for  the  market. —  (See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article 
Madder,  and  chapters  II.  and  III.,  Part  III.) 


CHAPTER  II. 


RECENT  INVENTIONS  AND  IMPROVEMENTS  IN  DYE- 
ING AND  CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES. 

DYEING,  DRYING,  FINISHING,  ETC. 

At  the  present  time,  science  and  its  applications  seem  to 
go  onward  almost  together.  No  sooner  is  a  new  fact  an- 
nounced than  it  is  made  available  for  some  useful  purpose  : 
and  never  was  there  an  age  so  fertile  in  discovery  as  that  in 
which  we  live.  They  may  be  thought  to  be  of  a  minor  kind  : 
and  we  cannot  perhaps  hope  that  any  discovery  yet  remains 
to  be  made  of  such  a  character  of  importance,  and  vital  inter- 
est, as  to  work  out  a  revolution  in  our  industrial  relations, 
equivalent  to  that  effected  by  the  steam-engine.  We  must 
expect  rather  to  go  on  eking  out  and  completing  the  fabric 
of  our  knowledge  by  the  acquisition  of  absent  details,  and 
by  arranging  and  harmonizing  its  farts,  strengthening 
evidence  and  cancelling  error,  thus  rendering  the  elements 
more  and  more  intelligible,  serviceable,  and  of  readier  access 
to  the  practical  man.  But  while  we  do  not  anticipate  any 
revolutionizing  discovery  in  science  or  industry,  we  may  still 
expect  that  many  useful  inventions  are  yet  to  be  made,  and 
improvements  to  be  effected,  both  in  the  chemical  and  me- 
chanical arts  and  manufactures.  These  may  not  be  great 
and  brilliant,  dazzling  the  world  by  their  splendor  ;  but 
they  may  confer  upon  us  new  facilities,  and  it  may  be,  new 
advantages  of  much  influence  on  our  social  condition.  We 
do  not  look  to  physical  science  as  the  sole  instrument  by 
which  that  condition  is  to  be  elevated  to  its  proper  standard  ; 
but,  operating  in  conjunction  with  the  moral  aspirations 
which  replace  in  our  artisan  population  the  besotted  content- 
ment of  the  serf,  we  may,  without  risk  of  disappointment,  an- 

59 


466 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ticipate  that  amelioration  awaits  us  ;  and  that  our  mechani- 
cal ingenuity,  instead  of  being  a  source  of  evil  and  of  misery, 
shall  become  the  blessing  of  the  world,  and  the  safeguard  of 
our  physical  well  being.  With  these  prefatory  remarks  we 
pass  on  to  our  regular  subject. 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  other  occupation  throughout  the  whole 
circle  of  the  manufacturing  arts  requiring  so  extensive  a  combi- 
nation of  taste,  chemistry,  and  mechanism  as  calico-printing, 
or  the  printing  of  woven  fabrics.  The  combination  of  three 
such  opposite  agencies  may  sound  oddly  ;  but  this  is  the  very 
circumstance  which  places  the  operations  in  so  high  a  rank  ; 
since,  although  we  may  meet  with  as  fine  taste,  as  dexterous 
chemical  manipulations  or  as  exquisite  machinery  in  many 
other  manufactures,  we  nowhere  find  all  three  combined  in  so 
remarkable  a  manner  as  in  this. 

We  purpose  in  this  and  the  two  following  chapters,  laying 
before  the  reader  a  series  of  very  valuable  inventions  and  im- 
provements, in  dyeing  and  calico-printing,  recently  made  in 
Great  Britain  and  France.* 

We  have  thought  it  advisable,  for  the  sake  of  order  as  well 
as  convenience,  to  class  the  different  subjects  of  each  patent 
under  the  head  of  series,  first,  second,  third,  &c,  there  being 
several  improvements  generally  comprised  under  the  same 
patent :  giving  the  date  of  each  patent  as  we  proceed,  to  pre- 
vent any  misconception  upon  the  subject,  as  well  as  imposition 
by  interested  parties,  or  those  intending  to  secure  patents,  in 
the  United  States,  for  inventions  and  improvements  of  a  simi 
lar  character. 

By  taking  this  course,  we  enable  all  who  may  feel  disposed 
to  adopt  those  inventions  or  improvements,  singly  or  collective- 
ly, for  their  own  especial  benefit,  to  do  so  without  molestation. 
These  observations  apply,  with  equal  force,  to  the  various  in- 
ventions and  improvements  described  in  the  foregoing  part  of 
this  work. 


*  In  chapters  V.  and  VI.  of  this  Part,  we  shall  give  everything,  of  any  prac- 
tical value,  on  Calico  Printing  Processes,  to  be  found  in  the  works  of  Dr.  Ure  and 
Mr.  Parnell,  and  in  a  much  better  form,  at  least  for  any  practical  purpose. 


CALfCO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


467 


I.  The  first  series  of  improvements*  which  we  shall  de- 
scribe, are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  John  Buchanan,  of  Ram- 
bottom,  Lancaster,  and  consist  in  "  a  new  arrangement  of 
machinery,  by  means  of  which  dyeing,  and  similar  opera- 
tions, are  performed  in  a  more  efficient  and  economical  man- 
ner than  by  the  apparatus  now  generally  in  use  for  such  pur- 
poses." 

Fig.  26,  represents  a  sectional  end  view  of  the  apparatus. 

Fig.  27,  a  sectional  side  view  ;  and, 

Fig.  28,  a  plan  of  the  machine. 

Fig.  29,  is  an  end  view  of  the  driving  gearing ;  and, 

Fig.  30,  similar  to  fig.  26,  showing  a  modification  of  the 
same  apparatus,  by  which  the  pieces  are  washed  or  rinsed  at 
the  same  time.  In  figures  27  and  28,  A,  represents  a  pulley 
driven  by  a  strap  and  connected  with  the  spur-wheel,  B, 
which  revolves  on  the  fixed  stud  or  axis,  a,  (fig.  27).  E,  is  a 
loose  pulley  moving  on  the  same  stud,  a,  on  to  which  the 
strap  may  be  shifted  when  it  is  re- 
quired to  stop  the  motion  of  the 
apparatus.  The  wheel,  B,  con- 
veys motion  to  two  similar  spur- 
wheels,  C  and  D,  (figs.  27  and 
29)  which  run  loose  on  their  re- 
spective shafts,  d,  and  c,  fig.  29. 
F  and  F1,  (fig.  27)  are  sliding 
couplings,  the  position  of  which 
is  governed  by  means  of  the  lever 
/,  which  vibrates  on  the  fulcrum, 
G,  passing  through  the  fixed 
stud,  a,  so  that  in  the  position  of 
the  lever,/,  as  represented  at  fig. 
27,  the  coupling,  F,  connects  the 
wheel,  D,  while  the  coupling,  F1,  being  disconnected  from  the 
spur-wheel,  C,  allows  it  to  run  free  of  the  shaft,  c.  But  sup- 
posing the  lever,/,  to  be  vibrated,  the  shaft,  c,  would  be  con- 
nected with  the  wheel,  C,  by  the  coupling,  F1,  and  the  shaft, 


shaft,  d,  with  the  spur- 


*  Patented  in  June,  1836. 


468 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


d,  would  be  free.  At  the  opposite  end  of  the  coupling,  F. 
and  F1,  to  that  at  which  they  connect  the  spur-wheels,  D 
and  C,  with  the  shafts,  d  and  e,  as  already  described,  is 
placed  the  friction  clips,  g  and  g\  which  run  free  of  the  fixed 
studs,  H  and  H1,  when  either  coupling  is  in  connection  with 
the  spur-wheels,  D  or  C,  but  when  that  is  not  the  case,  the 
stud,  H,  or  Hl,  impedes  the  rotation  of  the  shaft  on  which 
such  coupling  is  placed  as  would  be  the  case  with  the  shaft, 
c,  as  represented  in  fig.  27,  where  the  coupling,  F1,  is  discon- 
nected from  the  spur-wheel,  C,  and  the  clip,  gl,  is  in  contact 
with  the  stud,  H1.  The  position  of  this  driving  gearing  will 
be  seen  in  an  end  view  at  fig.  29,  where  the  same  letters  in- 
dicate the  same  parts  as  already  stated.  On  the  shaft,  d,  is 
placed  a  wooden  cylinder.  I,  and  perpendicularly  under  it  on 
the  shaft,  c,  a  similar  cylinder,  K,  which  partakes  of  the  mo- 
tion of  their  respective  shafts.  The  whole  of  the  above  de- 
scribed gearing  is  supported  in  an  oblong  cast-iron  vessel,  the 
shapes  of  which  may  be  seen  by  the  letters  n,  n,  n,  n,  in  figs. 


Fig.  27. 


26,  27,  and  28, 
the  lower  part 
of  which  ves- 
sel is  provided 
with  an  inte- 
rior casing  or 
division  as  rep- 
resented at,  m, 
m,  m,  m,  figs. 
26  and  27, 
which  divides 
the  vessel,  n, 
n,  n,  n,  into  an 
interior  cham- 


ber, O,  and  an  exterior  chamber,  P,  the  latter  of  which  is  a 
steam-chamber,  as  will  be  hereafter  described.  Independent 
of  the  driving  gearing  of  this  apparatus,  but  parallel  to  the 
shaft,  d,  are  placed  the  shafts,  L  and  M,  (figs.  27  and  28) 
which  are  provided  with  the  cylinders  which  run  free  on  the 
respective  shafts.    On  the  same  shafts,  L  and  M,  are  placed 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


469 


and  firmly  attached,  by  set  screws,  the  stretching-bars,  Q,  and 
Q,1,  the  position  of  which  (as  best  seen  at  fig.  26,)  is  governed 
by  the  vibration  of  the  lever,  R,  R,  which  is  provided  with 
the  racks,  r,  r,  taking  into  pinions  or  spur-wheels  at  the  ex- 
tremities of  the  respective  rods,  L  and  M.  S,  S,  are  guide 
rollers  running  free  at  the  lower  parts  of  the  interior  chamber, 
O.  We  shall  now  proceed  to  describe  the  mode  of  operating 
with  this  machine  for  one  description  of  work,  noticing  such 
parts  as  have  not  been  already  described  as  we  proceed. 
Supposing  it  therefore  be  required  to  dye  the  ordinary  de- 
scription of  calicos,  after  they  have  received  the  mordant 
from  the  printing-machine,  and  the  driving-geering  of  the  ap- 
paratus to  be  in  the  position  represented  at  fig.  27,  about 
twenty  pieces  of  calico  sewed  end  to  end  must  be  wound  or 
run  on  the  roller,  I,  which  will  then  fill  a  space  as  indicated 
by  the  dotted  line,  %  i,  figs.  26  and  30.  The  amount  of 
goods  to  be  operated  on  being  thus  uniformly  and  smoothly 
placed  or  wound  on  the  cylinder,  I,  the  driving  strap  is 
traversed  to  the  loose  pulley,  E,  and  the  end  of  the  goods 
passed  over  the  guide-rollers,  and  under  the  rollers,  S,  S,  at 
the  bottom  of  the  chamber,  O,  from  which  it  is  again  brought 
up  and  passed  over  the  stretching-bar,  Q,,  and  attached  to  the 
lower  cylinder,  K.  The  interior  chamber,  O,  is  then  filled  up 
nearly  to  the  top,  with  such  dyeing  solution  as  is  required,  see 
figs.  26  and  27,  and  steam  admitted  to  the  exterior  chamber, 
P,  through  the  aperture  p.  By  this  means  the  dye-liquor  in 
the  interior  chamber  is  gradually  heated  till  it  arrives  at  the 


Fig.  28. 


470  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

boiling  point.  But  should  it  be  required  to  accelerate  the 
heating  process,  steam  may  also  be  admitted  to  the  interior 
chamber  through  the  tap,  which  connects  with  the  dye- 
liquor  by  means  of  the  perforated  tube,  T,  T,  and  with  the 
steam-chamber,  P,  by  means  of  the  opening,  x\  (fig.  27) 
when  turned  opposite  to  the  channel,  t,  t.  This  channel, 
t,  t,  is  connected  with  the  chamber,  P,  in  the  direction  of  the 
bended  arrow,  seen  at  fig.  27,  and  is  carried  to  an  elevated 
position  for  the  purpose  of  preventing  any  slight  condension 
in  the  steam-chamber,  P,  allowing  the  atmospheric  pressure 
to  force  the  dye-liquor  into  the  steam-chamber  should  such 
occur.  In  fig.  27,  the  tap,  x,  is  represented  as  shut.  The 
dye-liquor  being  placed  in  the  interior  chamber,  O,  and  the 
cloth  arranged  as  already  described,  the  position  of  the  lever, 
/,  is  reversed,  by  which  the  coupling,  F,  and  the  wheel,  C, 
are  connected  at  the  same  time  that  the  coupling,  F,  is  libe- 
rated from  the  wheel,  D,  and  the  friction  clip,  g,  brought  in 
contact  with  the  stop,  H.  The  driving  strap  is  then  placed 
on  the  driving  pulley,  A,  and  motion  imparted  to  the  cylinder, 
K,  on  to  which  the  goods  are  regularly  wound  or  received 
over  the  stretcher,  Q,,  in  an  uniform  and  smooth  state,  having 
first  passed  through  the  dye-liquor  until  the  whole  amount 
originally  placed  on  the  upper  roller,  I,  is  unwound ;  as  soon 
as  this  is  effected  the  operator  vibrates  the  levers,  R,  R, 
which  reverses  the  position  of  the  stretching-bars,  Q,  and  Q,1, 
at  the  same  time  that  he  reverses  the  position  of  the  lever,  ft 
thereby  arresting  the  motion  of  the  cylinder,  K,  on  which  the 
goods  are  now  deposited  and  imparting  motion  to  the  cylin- 
der, I,  which  again  receives  them  in  a  uniform  and  smooth 
state  over  the  stretcher-rod,  Q,1,  which  has  already  been  ele- 
vated for  that  purpose.  Thus  the  goods  are  alternately 
transferred  through  the  dye-liquor  from  the  cylinder,  I,  to  the 
cylinder,  K,  and  the  reverse  until  the  process  be  complete, 
when  they  are  taken  off  the  cylinder,  I,  and  replaced  by 
others,  and  when  it  is  required  to  renew  the  dye-liquor  it 
may  be  run  off  at  the  tap,  v.  During  this  process  the  steam 
is  turned  into  the  chamber,  P,  by  a  separate  tap,  and  ad- 
mitted or  not  to  the  chamber,  O,  according  to  the  judgment 


CALICO  PRINTING   PROCESSES.  471 

of  the  operator,  and  the  nature  of  the  work  to  be  performed. 
Fig".  30,  represents  a  modification  of  the  invention  seen  in  the 
same  section  as  at  fig.  26,  with  the  addition  of  a  water-tank 

Fig.  30. 


provided  with  a  series  of  parallel  carrier  rollers  marked  S, 
above  which  the  goods  are  passed,  and  under  the  correspond- 
ing ribbed  rollers  at  the  bottom  of  the  vessel,  y,  y,  y,  y.  To 
put  this  part  of  the  invention  into  operation,  it  is  required,  as 
soon  as  the  dyeing  process  is  completed,  to  detach  one  end  of 
the  goods  from  the  roller,  K,  and  pass  it  over  the  guide  pul- 
ley, S,  and  through  the  squeezers,  W,  W,  (fig.  30)  and  thence 
forward  in  the  direction  of  the  line  indicated  by  the  arrows. 
The  rollers,  w,  w,  may  be  driven  in  any  convenient  manner. 
As  the  rollers,  w,  w,  deliver  the  cloth  it  is  deposited  on  the 
floor  at  Z.  While  this  part  of  the  process  is  proceeding,  the 
vessel,  y,  y,  y,  y,  is  supplied  with  a  continuous  stream  of 
fresh  water,  which  is  kept  in  a  constant  state  of  agitation  by 
the  levers  or  beaters  on  the  rollers,  S,  at  the  lower  part  of  the 
vessel,  and  the  goods  are  deposited  by  this  modification  of  the 
invention,  at  the  point,  z,  in  the  same  state  as  those  which 
have  been  subjected  to  the  operation  of  winching  in  the  ordi- 
nary manner.  From  the  foregoing  description  of  the  con- 
struction and  mode  of  operating  with  this  apparatus,  it  will 
be  obvious  to  dyers,  printers,  and  persons  conversant  with 


472 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


this  description  of  machinery,  that  it  is  equally  applicable  to 
dunging,  braning,  soaping,  and  all  similar '  processes.  It 
should  be  remarked  that  by  heating  the  dye-liquor  from  a 
steam-chamber,  its  strength  is  not  deteriorated  as  is  the  case 
when  entirely  heated  from  steam  admitted  in  the  ordinary 
manner.  Added  to  which  advantage  a  very  reduced  quantity 
of  dye-liquor  is  sufficient  to  dye  the  same  quantity  of  goods, 
and  there  is  no  risk  of  damage  to  the  pieces  during  the  pro- 
cess. The  space  also  is  less  than  that  required  by  the  ordi- 
nary apparatus,  and  "  the  steam,"  according  to  the  patentee, 
"  is  diminished  about  two-thirds,  and  consequently  the  expen- 
diture of  fuel,  while  the  labor  of  the  operative  is  diminished 
nearly  in  an  equal  ratio."  The  extra  work  performed  and 
the  saving  of  dyeing  material  are  equally  important,  but 
these  must  necessarily  vary  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
work. 

II.  The  second  series  of  improvements*  are  of  the  inven- 
tion of  Mr.  Joseph  Leese,  Junior,  of  Manchester,  and  consist, 
firstly,  in  the  application  of  a  simple  apparatus  or  moveable 
frame-work,  upon,  over,  or  around  which  the  pieces  of  calicos 
or  other  fabrics  are  to  be  wound  or  distended,  for  the  purpose 
of  being  washed  while  immersed  and  working  in  a  cistern  or 
tank  of  water.  This  frame-work,  with  the  piece  distended 
upon  it,  is  so  constructed  and  arranged,  that  the  piece  is 
pressed  against  the  body  of  water,  forming  a  resistance  suf- 
ficient to  wash  or  cleanse  the  piece  in  the  most  effectual 
manner. 

And  secondly,  in  a  peculiar  arrangement  of  frame-work 
and  rollers,  both  in  and  outside  of  the  dye  vats,  in  that  par- 
ticular process  of  the  art  in  which  the  pieces  are  to  be  dyed 
of  a  dark  blue  color,  with  indigo,  called  navy  blues  ;  and  in 
those  cases  also  where  a  white  yellow  or  other  color  having 
been  previously  printed  upon  them,  have  to  be  preserved ; 
that  is,  the  printed  surface  of  the  cloth  protected  from  all 
contact  and  friction  during  the  blue  dipping  or  dyeing  pro 
cess. 


*  Patented  in  March,  1839. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES.  473 

This  improvement  is  to  be  performed  by  a  simple  and  pe- 
culiar arrangement  of  apparatus,  in  order  to  pass  the  pieces 
through  the  indigo  vats  ;  and  which  is  to  be  driven  or  im- 
pelled by  machinery,  the  pieces  always  preserving  a  con- 
tinuous progressive  motion,  instead  of  hooking  them  upon  a 
frame,  and  dipping  them  by  hand  in  certain  portions  at  a 
time. 

By  the  peculiar  arrangement  of  the  apparatus  which  con- 
stitutes this  part  of  the  invention,  the  printed  pieces  are  al- 
ways made  to  pass  through  the  blue  dyeing  process,  with  the 
back  side  or  unprinted  surface  towards  the  leading  or  con- 
ducting rollers,  so  that  any  dragging  or  smearing  of  the 
printed  color  or  resist,  (which  must  otherwise  happen  if  such 
color,  being  wet,  rubs  against  a  roller)  is  entirely  prevented. 

And  thirdly,  these  improvements  consist  in  a  peculiar 
method  of  discharging  dark  or  navy  blues.  In  Plate  II.,  fig. 
1,  represents  a  sectional  elevation  of  a  water  cistern  and 
frame-work,  for  washing  the  pieces  ;  fig.  2,  represents  a  slight 
modification  of  the  apparatus  for  effecting  the  same  purpose  ; 
and  fig.  3,  represents  the  peculiar  arrangement  of  pieces,  vats, 
frames  and  rollers,  for  indigo  blue  dyeing  or  dipping. 

The  washing  apparatus,  as  shewn  in  fig.  1,  consists  of  a 
cistern  a,  a,  into  which  the  frame  b,  b,  is  suspended  by  a 
pivot,  fixed  in  a  strong  rail  or  bar,  fastened  to  the  sides  of  the 
frame,  and  resting  on  either  side  of  the  cistern ;  on  this  pivot 
the  frame  is  made  to  vibrate. 

There  are  also  attached  to  the  frame  a  series  of  rollers  d,  d, 
over  which  the  pieces  to  be  washed  are  distended ;  at  one 
end  of  the  frame  is  fixed  a  pair  of  drawing  rollers  e,  e,  to 
draw  the  piece  through  the  cistern  ;  these  move  with  the 
frame,  so  that  when  the  vibratory  or  pendulous  motion  is 
given  to  it,  any  sudden  jerk  or  irregularity  in  the  moving  of 
the  piece  through  the  cistern  is  prevented. 

When  pieces  are  to  be  washed,  (water  being  admitted  into 
the  cistern  through  the  tap  /,)  they  are  threaded  over  the 
rollers  of  the  frame,  and  drawn  through  the  cistern  by  the 
drawing  rollers,  at  the  same  time  the  vibratory  motion  is 
given  to  the  frame,  and  the  piece,  as  it  moves  forward,  is 

60 


474 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


pressed  against  the  water ;  the  amount  of  this  pressure,  and 
the  flow  of  the  water  against  the  piece,  being  regulated  as 
may  be  required,  by  the  speed  at  which  the  frame  is  made  to 
move.  Should  it  be  found,  in  any  case,  that  owing  to  the 
resistance  of  the  water,  the  pull  upon  the  piece,  in  being 
drawn  through  the  cistern,  is  too  great,  the  drawing  rollers 
must  work  only  at  intervals,  that  is  to  say,  the  piece  must 
first  be  wound  on  the  frame,  which,  when  filled,  must  be  put 
in  motion  till  the  piece  shall  be  sufficiently  washed,  then 
again  drawn  through  the  drawing  rollers,  and  thus  the 
frame,  being  re-filled  with  fresh  cloth,  is  again  to  be  set  in 
motion. 

Fig.  2,  is  similar  to  fig.  1,  in  its  principle,  as  far  as  relate.- j 
to  the  pressure  of  the  piece  wound  on  a  frame  against  the 
water  in  the  cistern,  but  the  mode  of  its  operation  is  differ 
ent,  and  as  follows : — a,  a,  is  the  water  cistern ;  b,  b,  is  a 
frame,  which  rests  in  the  cistern  on  four  wheels,  d,  having 
flanges  to  them ;  at  the  bottom  of  the  cistern  are  short 
iron  bars  or  rails,  c,  on  which  the  wheels  run,  so  that  the 
frame  may  be  moved  backwards  and  forwards  in  the  cistern. 

When  pieces  are  to  be  washed,  they  are  drawn  through 
the  rollers  of  the  frame  by  the  drawing  rollers,  and  the  frame 
is  moved  horizontally  backwards  and  forwards,  running  upon 
the  rails  at  the  bottom  of  the  cistern;  the  drawing  rollers 
may,  with  this  machine,  as  with  fig.  1,  work  continuously  or 
at  intervals,  as  may  be  required. 

In  fig.  3,  a,  and  b,  are  two  vats,  into  which  indigo  is  put, 
together  with  such  other  ingredients  as  are  commonly  used 
by  printers  and  dyers,  to  prepare  it  for  the  purposes  of  dyeing ; 
where  a  dark  shade  of  blue  is  required,  these  vats  must  be 
longer  and  a  little  deeper  than  those  commonly  in  use,  the 
size  being  entirely  regulated  by  the  shade  of  color,  c,  c,  and 
d,  d,  are  two  frames,  which  are  to  work  in  the  vats,  having 
on  them  a  series  of  rollers,  e,  e,  e,  arranged  in  a  transverse  or 
slanting  direction,  as  shown  in  the  figure. 

At  a  considerable  height  above  the  vats,  and  directly  over 
them,  in  a  fixed  frame,  are  placed  another  series  of  rollers, 
/>/>/>/>/>/>  slanted  the  reverse  way  of  those  in  the  vats. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


475 


The  height  of  these  rollers  must  be  so  arranged  with  the 
speed  at  which  the  piece  is  to  move  through  the  vat,  that 
there  shall  be  sufficient  time  for  the  piece,  after  it  has  passed 
through  the  vat,  to  fix  the  indigo  (which  it  receives  from  it) 
fast  upon  the  cloth  by  exposure  to  the  air,  that  it  may  be 
oxidized,  or,  to  use  the  expression  common  amongst  dyers, 
sufficiently  aired  before  it  again  enters  the  vat  to  receive  a 
fresh  coating. 

On  the  ends  of  one  line  of  these  top  rollers,  /,  f}  are  fixed 
small  pullies,  g ;  a  universal  band,  h,  is  wound  round  each 
and  all  of  these  pullies,  connecting  them  together,  so  that 
when  the  first  pulley  is  put  in  motion,  all  the  rest  are  moved 
by  it,  and  at  one  uniform  speed ;  or  if  it  is  preferred,  small 
bevil  wheels  may  be  substituted  for  the  pullies.  A  single  vat 
may,  by  this  arrangement,  be  used ;  the  necessity  of  using 
two  vats  together  being  regulated  by  the  depth  of  the  shade 
of  blue  required  by  the  size  of  the  vats,  or  by  the  nature  of 
the  colors  which  are  printed  upon  the  pieces  to  be  dyed  ;  for 
instance,  where  these  colors  require  to  be  passed  through 
lime  water  before  they  are  entered  into  the  blue  vat,  or 
where  the  first  vat,  into  which  the  piece  is  entered,  requires  a 
greater  proportion  of  lime  than  the  second, — then,  in  both 
these  cases,  two  vats  must  be  used  together ;  or  in  case  the 
piece  is  required  to  remain  only  a  short  time  in  the  lime  mix- 
ture, previous  to  its  entry  into  the  indigo  vat,  then  a  small 
cistern,  i,  i,  must  be  fixed  over  the  vat,  as  in  fig.  3 ;  and  the 
piece  having  passed  once  or  twice  through  it  over  the  first  or 
second  pair  of  rollers,  continues  its  progress  onwards  into  the 
indigo  vat. 

There  is  also  another  advantage  in  working  two  vats  to- 
gether ; — where  a  quantity  of  cloth  has  been  dyed,  and  the 
amount  of  indigo  in  them  consequently  reduced,  one  of  these 
vats  may  be  re-set,  and  have  fresh  indigo  put  into  it,  while 
the  other  is  weak,  and  thus  a  greater  uniformity  be  obtained, 
both  in  the  shade  of  blue,  and  the  speed  at  which  the  piece 
passes  through  the  vats. 

When  pieces,  previously  printed,  are  to  be  dipped,  they  are 
either  wound  on  a  roll,  or  plaited  down  and  laid  on  a  board, 


476 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


placed  over  the  middle  of  the  vat  in  which  they  are  to  be 
dyed ;  immediately  over  them  is  a  wooden  shed  or  cover, 
to  keep  them  dry  and  protect  them  from  the  droppings  of  the 
wet  pieces,  as  they  pass  over  the  rollers  above.  The  piece  is 
entered  into  the  vat  with  the  unprinted  surface  to  the  rollers, 
and  passing  under  the  two  first  rollers,  receives  a  coating  of 
indigo  ;  it  is  then  drawn  out  of  the  vat  in  the  direction  of  the 
arrows,  to  be  exposed  to  the  air,  by  the  two  rollers  in  the 
frame  above,  corresponding  to  those  in  the  vat.  It  then  re- 
enters the  vat  by  the  second  or  next  pair  of  rollers  ;  is  again 
exposed  to  the  air,  and  so  continues  to  move  forward  till  all 
the  rollers  have  been  passed  over  in  the  manner  shown  in  the 
drawing. 

When  working  two  vats  together,  the  piece,  after  it  has 
run  through  all  the  rollers,  will  be  found  to  have  passed  from 
the  middle  of  the  first  to  the  middle  of  the  second  vat,  where 
it  is  drawn  through  a  pair  of  drawing  rollers  I,  Z,  and  wound 
on  a  roll  m,  or  plaited  down,  if  preferred  ;  the  piece  is  then 
taken  to  be  scoured,  washed,  &c,  and  prepared  for  the 
market. 

When  a  piece  has  been  dyed  blue,  and  it  is  wished  to  pro- 
duce a  white  object  upon  it,  the  pattern  is  printed  either  by 
the  block  or  cylinder,  with  a  color  made  from  bichromate  of 
potash  dissolved  in  water,  and  thickened  as  may  be  required 
with  flower  or  gum  ;  the  strength  of  this  solution  being  regu- 
lated by  the  depth  of  blue  shade  to  be  discharged.  After  the 
piece  has  been  printed  with  the  above  color,  it  is  passed 
through  a  cistern,  filled  with  a  solution  of  oxalic  acid  and 
water ;  the  strength  and  quantity  of  the  acid,  per  gallon  of 
water,  depending  upon  the  depth  of  the  blue  to  be  discharged. 
It  is  however,  found,  that  when  a  tolerably  strong  solution 
is  used,  (stronger  than  is  actually  necessary  to  produce  a 
white,)  a  much  more  perfect  white  is  produced  ;  and  that  the 
edges  of  the  solids  that  form  the  pattern  do  not  float,  bleed, 
run,  or  lose  their  smartness  and  clearness,  as  much  as  they 
would  if  a  weaker  solution  were  used  in  this  process  ;  how- 
ever, though  the  solution  of  acid  be  strong,  the  work  in  many 
patterns  is  not  so  sufficiently  clear  as  to  be  considered  perfect. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


477 


After  the  piece  has  passed  through  this  acid  liquor,  it  is  en- 
tered into  lime  water,  or  a  weak  solution  of  potash  or  soda, 
to  clear  the  whites ;  and  is  then  washed,  finished,  &c. 
Now,  the  objections  to  this  mode  of  procuring  a  white  upon 
a  dark  blue  ground,  and  the  reasons  perhaps  why  it  is  not 
more  generally  adopted,  are,  first,  that  the  expense  of  the 
oxalic  acid  required  is  so  great,  that  the  same  effect  may  be 
more  economically  produced  by  using  a  resist ;  this  resist  be- 
ing printed  upon  the  cloth  previous  to  its  being  dyed  in  the 
blue  vat;  and  also  the  difficulty  of  procuring  a  smart  and 
correct  impression  of  the  pattern,  owing  to  the  flushing  and 
swelling  of  the  discharge. 

By  this  improvement,  both  these  objections  are  said  to  be 
obviated,  by  subjecting  the  piece  to  a  very  intense  heat,  sud- 
denly and  immediately  after  it  has  passed  through  the  oxalic 
acid  solution  ;  for  this  purpose,  a  stove,  strongly  heated  by 
fire,  answers  the  best ;  but  steam  heat  may  be  used,  by  pass- 
ing the  pieces  over  a  row  of  steam  chests,  and  also  by  caus- 
ing several  jets  of  steam  from  pipes,  bored  with  small  holes, 
to  blow  upon  it :  both  these  plans  will  answer,  but  not  so  ef- 
fectually as  the  stove  heat ;  by  this  plan  a  very  clear  and  ex- 
cellent discharge  is  produced,  and  with  a  smaller  quantity  of 
oxalic  acid  than  would  be  otherwise  necessary. 

III.  The  third  series  of  improvements*  are  of  the  inven- 
tion of  Mr.  Louis  Joseph  Wallerand,  of  Basing-lane,  London, 
and  consist  in  giving  shaded  stripes  of  color  to  woolen,  silk, 
cotton,  or  other  fabrics,  by  the  employment  of  a  peculiar  ar- 
rangement of  machinery,  which  produces  the  effect  in  a  more 
expeditious,  economic,  and  perfect  manner,  than  by  the  ordi- 
nary hand-process.  This  machine  may  also  be  used  for  dye- 
ing shaded  stripes  to  form  a  ground  upon  fabrics  intended 
afterwards  to  receive  a  printed  pattern. 

In  Plate  L,  are  several  views  of  the  machinery  by  which 
the  shaded  stripes  of  color  are  given  to  the  cloth  or  other  fa- 
bric. Fig.  1,  is  a  longitudinal  elevation  of  the  machine;  fig. 
2,  is  a  plan  or  bird's-eye  view  :  and  fig.  3,  is  a  transverse  ver- 


*  Patented  in  Dec,  1844. 


478 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tical  section,  taken  in  the  line  1,  2,  of  fig.  2.  A,  is  the  wood- 
en frame-work,  which  supports  a  vat,  C,  containing  the  dye- 
liquor  ;  B,  B,  is  a  steam-pipe,  running  along  the  bottom  of  the 
vat,  for  heating  the  dye-liquor  ;  D,  and  D1,  are  brackets,  af- 
fixed at  each  end  of  the  machine,  and  furnished  with  slots, 
in  which  the  axes  of  wooden  rollers  or  cloth-beams  J,  and  J1, 
work  ;  E,  are  a  series  of  bars  (made  of  either  wood  or  metal), 
which  serve  as  bearings  for  a  series  of  wheels  or  rollers,  F ; 
and  G,  are  a  similar  series  of  bars,  placed  below  the  bars 
E,  and  are  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  the  wheels  or  rollers, 
F1,  which  correspond  in  size  and  position  with  rollers,  F. 
These  bars,  E,  and  G,  rest  upon  cross-pieces  at  the  ends  of 
the  vat  C. 

The  drawing  represents  each  pair  of  bars  as  carrying  eight 
wheels  only,  but  the  number  may  be  increased  or  diminished 
as  may  be  thought  necessary,  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
fabric  to  be  dyed. 

The  upper  and  lower  series  of  wheels  or  rollers  F,  and  F1, 
are  made  either  of  wood  or  metal,  and  are  mounted  loosely 
on  their  axles.  H,  is  a  roller,  covered  with  felt  or  other  ma- 
terial, and  mounted  in  slotted  bearings  at  the  end  of  the  dye- 
vat  C :  this  roller  is  intended  to  take  up  the  color  from  the 
vat,  and  to  distribute  it  upon  the  surface  of  the  cloth.  I,  is 
a  lever  or  handle  for  raising  the  roller,  H,  so  that  it  may  come 
in  contact  with  the  fabric.  By  this  means,  those  parts  of  the 
fabric  are  dyed  which  would  not  otherwise  have  received  any 
color.  When  a  sufficient  depth  of  color  is  thus  obtained,  the 
roller,  H,  is  depressed  by  means  of  the  lever,  I,  and  thrown  out 
of  contact  with  the  cloth.  J,  and  J1,  are  cloth  beams,  upon 
which  the  fabric  is  wound  before  and  after  it  is  passed  be- 
tween the  wheels,  F.  K,  and  K1,  are  wooden  vessels  at  either 
end  of  the  vat,  for  the  reception  of  any  portion  of  the  dye 
which  may  fall  from  the  fabric  wound  on  the  beams,  J,  and  J1. 
L,  is  a  pipe,  furnished  with  a  stop-cock,  for  the  entrance  of  the 
steam  into  the  pipe,  B  ;  its  escape  is  regulated  by  the  pipe  and 
cock,  M.  N,  N,  are  cog-wheels,  mounted  respectively  on  the 
axles  of  the  cloth-beams,  J,  and  J1,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving 
motion  from  any  convenient  gearing,  and  conveying  it  to  the 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


479 


cloth-beams ;  and  O,  are  cross-pieces,  serving  to  support  the 
fabric  while  being  passed  through  the  machine. 

In  order  to  produce  shaded  stripes  by  this  machine,  the 
fabric,  which  is  first  wound  upon  the  beam  J1,  is  passed  from 
that  beam  between  the  upper  and  lower  wheels  or  rollers,  P, 
and  F1,  when  it  is  taken  up  by  the  beam,  J,  to  which  ro- 
tary motion  is  communicated  for  that  purpose.  The  fabric, 
when  put  in  motion,  turns  the  lower  wheels,  which  are  par- 
tially immersed  in  the  dye-liquor,  and  also  the  upper  wheels, 
which  press  upon  the  fabric.  The  lower  wheels,  F1,  (the  peri- 
pheries of  which  are  covered  with  felt  or  other  similar  mate- 
rial) by  their  rotary  movement,  take  up  a  portion  of  coloring 
matter,  and  deposit  it  upon  the  fabric.  By  this  means,  the 
fabric  is  well  charged  with  color  in  those  parts  which  pass  be- 
tween and  are  in  contact  with  the  wheels,  and  on  being 
wound  upon  the  beam,  J,  the  color  spreads  by  capillary  attrac- 
tion, and  forms  the  required  gradation  of  tint.  This  opera- 
tion is  to  be  repeated  by  reversing  the  motion  of  the  cloth- 
beams,  until  the  required  depth  of  color  is  obtained  for  the 
stripes.  The  roller,  H,  may  then  be  raised,  so  as  to  blend  the 
lighter  shades  of  the  stripes  together,  as  before  mentioned,  by 
giving  a  tinge  of  color  to  the  whole  surface  of  the  fabric  ;  this 
may  be  repeated  one  or  more  times,  according  to  the  quality 
of  the  lightest  shade  which  may  be  required  ;  but  if  the 
shades  are  intended  to  be  distinct,  as  will  be  the  case  when 
using  two  or  more  colors,  as  hereafter  explained,  the  roller,  H, 
must  not  be  used. 

In  order  to  produce  the  stripes  at  greater  or  less  distances 
apart,  it  is  only  necessary  to  increase  or  diminish  the  number 
of  bars,  E,  and  G,  and  wheels,  F,  and  F1.  The  width  of  the 
machine  may  of  course  be  varied,  according  to  the  width  of 
the  fabric  to  be  dyed. 

When  fabrics  of  a  thin  texture,  such  as  gauze,  lace,  &c., 
are  to  be  dyed,  the  number  of  rollers  may  be  diminished,  as 
a  sufficient  quantity  of  the  coloring  matter  will  more  quickly 
be  taken  up  and  penetrate  the  fabric. 

In  order  to  ensure  a  perfect  production  of  the  shaded  stripes 
upon  both  sides  of  thick  fabrics,  such  as  flannels,  felted  cloth, 


480 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


&c.j  a  modified  arrangement  of  the  above  described  appara 
tus  (as  shown  at  figs.  4,  5,  and  6,)  is  employed,  by  which 
means,  a  portion  of  the  dye-liquor  is  deposited  in  stripes  upon 
the  upper  surface  of  the  cloth,  as  well  as  on  the  under  surface, 
as  above  described.  Fig.  4,  is  a  longitudinal  elevation  of  this 
machine  ;  fig.  5,  a  plan  view  of  the  same  ;  and  fig.  6,  a  ver- 
tical section,  taken  in  the  line  3,  4,  of  fig.  5.  The  addi 
tion  consists  of  a  vessel,  Q,,  containing  dye-liquor,  which  is 
kept  heated  by  a  steam-pipe,  R ; — S,  S,  are  a  series  of  cocks, 
attached  to  the  bottom  of  the  vessel,  Q,,  and  are  intended  to 
supply  a  limited  quantity  of  dye-liquor  to  a  series  of  small 
delivering-wheels  or  rollers,  T,  at  distances  apart  equal  to  the 
wheels,  F.  The  construction  of  the  cocks,  and  their  attach 
ment  with  the  rollers,  will  be  clearly  seen  by  referring  to  the 
enlarged  sectional  view  fig.  6.*  U,  U,  are  rods,  attached  sev- 
erally at  bottom  to  the  plug  of  each  cock,  and  connected 
at  top  to  a  horizontal  bar,  V ;  the  forward  and  backward  mo- 
tion of  which  causes  the  cocks  to  open  and  close  as  required, 
and  thus  the  quantity  of  liquor  supplied  to  the  rollers,  T,  may 
oe  regulated. 

The  manner  of  working  this  machine  is  as  follows  : — The 
fabric  is  first  passed  between  the  upper  and  lower  rollers, 
F,  and  F1,  where  its  under  surface  receives  the  dye,  which 
penetrates  into  the  cloth ;  the  cocks  are  then  opened  to  the 
extent  required,  by  moving  the  bar,  Y ;  and  the  fabric,  as  it 
passes  under  the  rollers,  T,  is  supplied  on  its  upper  surface 
with  the  dye  liquor,  which  flows  from  the  vessel,  Q,,  through 
the  cocks,  S,  S,  on  to  the  rollers,  T. 

It  is  sometimes  necessary  (when  operating  with  certain 
dark  colors)  to  apply  the  coloring  liquor  to  the  fabric  at  a  boil- 
ing heat ;  in  such  cases  the  rollers,  T,  are  displaced,  and 
sponge  is  applied  to  the  ends  of  the  tubes  which  descend  from 
the  cocks  ;  this  sponge,  when  brought  in  contact  with  the 
fabric,  will  convey  the  liquor  direct  to  its  surface,  and  con- 
sequently, prevent  the  possibility  of  the  liquor  prematurely 
cooling,  as  would  be  the  case  if  the  rollers  were  employed. 

This  invention  of  obtaining  stripes  of  shaded  color  may 
be  farther  modified  by  the  application  of  two  or  more  dye- 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


481 


vats,  containing  different  colors.  The  arrangement  of  the 
rollers  will  be  as  represented  at  fig.  7, — the  set  belonging  to 
one  vat,  containing  (say)  a  yellow  color,  being  placed  so  as 
to  intercept  the  spaces  which  the  rollers  in  the  other  vat,  con- 
taining (say)  a  red  dye,  have  left  on  the  fabric. 

IV.  The  fourth  series  of  improvements*  are  of  the  inven- 
tion of  Mr.  Hugh  Unsworth,  of  Blackrod,  Lancaster,  and 
consist,  firstly,  in  a  certain  combination  or  arrangement  of 
mechanism,  whereby  the  various  operations  of  bleaching 
may  be  performed  in  one  machine,  instead  of  being  separately 
effected  by  distinct  machines  or  processes,  as  hitherto  done, 
and  thus  producing  a  better  "  finish  or  condition"  upon  the 
calicos  or  other  fabrics,  and  also  greatly  economizing  hand 
labor.  Secondly,  in  passing  the  cloth  after  it  has  been  once 
dried,  again  partially  through  the  mangling  or  calendering 
portion  of  the  apparatus,  and  in  contact  with  the  wet  cloth, 
in  order  that  the  dry  cloth  may  thus  be  damped  or  "  condi- 
tioned," which  necessary  process  in  finishing  woven  goods  or 
fabrics,  is  usually  performed  separately  by  a  damping  ma- 
chine. And,  lastly,  in  the  application  of  a  drying  cylinder  to 
the  ordinary  mangling  or  calendering  apparatus,  thereby  ren- 
dering that  machine  much  more  effective  in  its  operation  upon 
the  cloth,  in  those  instances  where  the  improved  combination 
of  machinery  is  employed  in  mangling  only,  and  not  for  the 
finishing  process. 

In  Plate  II.,  fig.  1,  represents  a  side  elevation  of  the  im- 
proved apparatus,  as  adapted  to  operate  upon  calicos,  &c., 
subsequent  to  the  process  of  bleaching,!  and  fig.  2,  represents 
a  similar  view  in  section,  taken  vertically  through  the  middle 
of  the  machine. 

The  main  framing  or  standard  of  the  machine  a,  a,  b,  6, 
support  or  cany  ordinary  mangling  or  calendering  bowls  or 
rollers,  c,  c,  c,  c,  (composed  as  usual,  some  of  brass  or  metal, 
and  others  of  paper  or  cotton,  as  required,)  bearing  in  steps  or 
pedestals,  d,  d}  d,  d,  and  also  a  large  drying  cylinder,  e,  heated 
by  steam  through  its  axis,  supplied  by  the  pipe  /,  or  other- 


*  Patented  in  August,  1840. 


61 


t  See  chapter  I.  Part  II. 


482 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


wise  ;  other  auxiliary  drying  cylinders,  g,  gi  g,  g,  are  also 
provided  and  suitably  furnished  with  tension  or  guide  rollers, 
h,  h,  h,  h,  when  the  drying  surface  of  the  cylinder,  e,  is  not 
found  sufficient,  as  in  the  mangling  process  only.  The  ma- 
chine is  also  provided  with  heavy  weighted  leverage,  i,  i,  and 
connecting  links,  k,  k,  for  the  purpose  of  increasing  the  pres- 
sure of  the  mangling  cylinders,  c,  c,  and  dispelling  the  greater 
portion  of  wetness  in  the  first  instance,  as  the  cloth  enters 
the  machine,  passing  over  the  stretching  or  distending  bars, 
lj  Z,  1.  There  is  also  the  ordinary  similarly  weighted  leverage, 
m,  m,  applied  to  the  upper  calendering  rollers,  c,  c,  and  also 
the  usual  lifting  bar,  n,  n,  with  its  rack  and  pinion,  o,  o,  to  be 
worked  by  a  winch  handle,  for  raising  the  two  upper  rollers, 
c,  c,  when  necessary,  by  means  of  links  or  rods,  p,  p. 

The  operation  of  the  machine  is  as  follows  : — the  wet  cloth, 
as  it  comes  from  the  squeezers  after  bleaching,  or  any  other 
wet  process,  is  placed  upon  a  scray  or  table,  and  first  guided 
by  the  hands  of  the  attendant  over  and  under  the  stretching 
rails,  I,  I,  I,  and  passed  between  the  two  lower  mangling 
rollers,  c,  c,  where  great  pressure  being  applied,  as  before 
stated,  it  is  ready  to  proceed  immediately  around  the  drying 
cylinder,  e,  when  it  may  be  only  partially  dried,  and  passing 
onwards  (in  the  direction  of  the  arrow,)  is  submitted  to  the 
upper  calendering  cylinders,  c,  c,  and  over  the  other  dfying 
cylinders,  g,  g,  g,  g,  as  shewn  in  the  drawing,  when  the  dried 
cloth  is  again  passed  into  the  machine  at  the  back,  proceeding 
from  the  surface  of  the  lowest  drying  cylinder,  and  thence 
through  the  calendering  bowls,  c,  c,  a  second  time,  but  now  in 
contact  with  the  wet,  or  only  partially  dried  cloth ;  thus  re- 
ceiving the  operation  of  damping  by  such  contact,  instead  of 
being  separately  damped  by  another  machine,  as  heretofore 
done  ;  this  damping  and  finishing  operation,  being  thus  much 
better  performed,  and  the  "  condition"  and  "  finish"  of  the  cloth 
materially  improved.  After  this  operation,  it  is  wound  upon 
a  roller  at  q,  by  a  strap,  r,  passing  around  the  pullies,  5, 5,  or  in 
any  other  convenient  manner.  If  thought  desirable,  an  ordi- 
nary stretching  cylinder  may  be  employed  in  this  machinery, 
as  shewn  by  dots  in  fig.  2,  in  place  of  the  rails,  /,  I. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


483 


V.  'The  fifth  series  of  improvements*  are  of  the  invention 
of  Mr.  John  Keely,  of  Nottingham,  and  Mr.  Alexander  Alli- 
ott,  of  Lenton,  and  consist  in  an  improved  apparatus  for  dry- 
ing or  freeing  liquid  or  moisture,  from  cotton,  silk,  wool,  &c, 
and  also  in  stretching  the  goods. 

In  Plate  III.,  fig.  1,  represents,  in  partial  sectional  eleva- 
tion, a  machine  for  drying  goods  solely,  or  freeing  them  from 
liquid  or  moisture.  A,  A,  is  the  frame-work  of  the  machine  * 
B,  a  vertical  shaft,  which  turns  in  a  socket,  a,  in  the  bottc 
bridge,  b,  and  carries  at  top  a  friction-cone,  c,  by  which  a  a 
tary  motion  is  given  to  it,  in  the  manner  to  be  hereafter  more 
fully  explained.  C,  C,  is  a  drum,  of  two  concentric  compart- 
ments, d,  d,  e,  e,  of  the  shape  shown  in  the  drawing,  which  is 
fitted  loosely  on  the  shaft,  B,  and  rests,  when  not  in  motion, 
on  two  conical  projections,  f,  g,  turned  upon  the  shaft :  both 
compartments  have  one  common  bottom  of  metal,  and  are 
formed  at  the  sides  each  of  a  continuous  length  of  tinned  iron 
wire,  wound  in  a  series  of  circles,  at  small  distances  apart, 
and  connected  transversely  by  slips  of  metal,  soldered  there- 
to. The  top  or  cover  of  the  inner  compartment,  d,  d,  is  se- 
cured by  nuts  and  screws  to  a  ring  of  angle-iron,  which  binds 
the  wire  sides  together,  at  top ;  but  that  of  the  outer  com- 
partment, e,  e,  in  which  alone  the  goods  to  be  dried  are 
placed,  is  made  to  lift  off,  in  order  to  introduce  and  remove 
the  goods,  and  has  a  rim,  both  on  its  outer  and  inner  periphe- 
ry ;  so  that,  when  fixed  in  its  place,  the  inner  rim  presses 
against  the  outside  of  the  inner  compartment,  and  the  outer 
rim  overlaps  the  sides  of  the  outer  compartment  itself.  When 
the  machine  is  at  work,  the  cover  of  the  outer  compartment 
is  further  secured  in  its  place  by  bolts  or  pins  (not  seen  in  the 
drawing).  The  sides  of  the  inner  compartment,  d,  d,  are 
connected  to  the  bottom  by  prolonging  the  transverse  slips  of 
metal  which  connect  the  circles  of  wire,  and  rivetting  and  sol  - 
dering them  to  the  plates.  The  wire  sides  of  the  outer  com- 
partment are  bound  together  at  top  by  a  ring  of  angle-iron,  to 
which  they  are  rivetted  and  soldered,  and  are  connected  to 


*  Patented  in  March,  1843. 


484 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  bottom  plate  by  turning  up  the  plate  over  the  sides,  and 
soldering  and  rivetting,  as  before.  D,  D,  is  a  governor,  sus- 
pended within  the  inner  compartment,  d,  d,  of  the  drum,  C,  C  ; 
the  two  weighted  arms,  k\  h,  being  loosely  affixed  at  their  el- 
bows to  two  studs  in  the  top  plate  of  the  drum,  so  as  to 
turn  freely  thereon,  and  resting,  by  their  upper  ends,  on 
a  collar,  i}  projecting  from  the  shaft.  E,  E,  is  an  outer 
case,  which  surrounds  the  whole  of  the  drum,  except  at 
top,  and  is  intended  for  the  reception  of  the  water  driven 
off  from  the  goods,  but  is  fixed,  not  to  the  drum,  but  to 
the  framework,  A,  A.  At  2/,  there  is  a  tap  for  drawing  off 
the  water,  and  in  the  bottom  an  orifice  for  the  insertion  of  a 
pipe  to  admit  hot  air.  When  rotary  motion  is  given  to  the 
vertical  shaft,  B,  it  carries  round  with  it  the  drum ;  and,  in 
proportion  to  the  velocity  of  the  motion,  there  is  a  centrifugal 
tendency  imparted  to  the  liquid  particles  contained  in  the 
goods  (which  is  the  useful  effect  desired  to  be  produced  by 
the  machine) ;  but,  as  the  same  centrifugal  tendency  in  the 
parts  of  the  machine  would,  in  case  of  any  unequal  distribu- 
tion of  the  weight,  cause,  if  not  counteracted,  an  injurious 
strain  on  the  central  shaft,  B,  and  might  cause,  at  the  high 
velocities  necessary  for  drying  goods  quickly,  an  actual  dis- 
ruption of  the  machine  (and  this  difficulty  is  further  increased 
when  the  weight  of  the  goods  happens  to  be  not  quite  equally 
distributed  over  the  drum),  the  governor,  D,  D,  has  been  intro- 
duced to  prevent  such  consequences.  The  arms  of  the  gov- 
ernor expand  as  the  speed  of  the  shaft  increases,  and  gradu- 
ally raise  the  drum,  C,  C,  from  off  its  seat  on  the  conical  sup- 
ports, /,  g  ;  and  thus  the  drum  is  left  free  to  adjust  itself 
according  to  its  natural  gravitating  tendencies,  so  as  to  bring 
the  centre  of  gravity  in  uniform  coincidence  with  the  centre 
of  rotation.  The  drum  is  gimbled  to  the  shaft  in  the  manner 
shown  at  z,  fig.  1,  which  allows  of  its  moving  in  any  direc- 
tion. To  prevent  the  drum  from  rising  too  suddenly,  there  is 
a  spiral  spring,  k,  affixed  to  the  shaft,  immediately  above  the 
conical  support,  g.  For  still  farther  maintaining  the  drum  in 
a  state  of  equilibrium,  it  is  encircled  at  the  middle  by  a  hol- 
low ring  or  girdle,  F,  F,  which  is  about  half  filled  with  water, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


485 


or  other  suitable  fluid  ;  as  this  ring  rotates,  should  the  weight 
of  goods  incline  to  preponderate  at  any  part,  the  weight  of 
water,  getting  to  the  opposite  side,  serves  more  or  less  to  pre- 
vent and  counteract  such  preponderance.  The  equilibrating 
effect  of  this  ring  is  increased,  if  the  interior  is  divided  into 
two  or  more  channels.  G,  is  a  pipe  by  which  steam  or  hot 
air  can  be  introduced  into  the  centre  of  the  drum,  when  it  is 
desired  by  these  means  to  accelerate  the  drying  of  the  goods, 
the  bottom  of  the  drum  being  perforated  at  the  centre  with  a 
number  of  holes,  to  admit  the  same.  The  rotary  action  of 
the  shaft,  B,  is  obtained  in  the  following  manner  : — I,  is  a  disc, 
affixed  to  the  end  of  a  shaft,  which  disc  is  beveled  off  near 
its  periphery,  to  correspond,  at  that  part,  with  the  surface  of 
the  cone  c,  and  shaft,  B,  so  that,  when  made  to  revolve  in  a 
horizontal  direction,  it  shall  cause  the  cone,  c,  and  shaft,  B,  to 
revolve  in  a  vertical  direction.  L1,  is  a  cone,  affixed  to  the 
end  of  the  shaft,  K1 ;  and  L2,  another  cone,  of  the  same  di- 
mensions, but  placed  with  its  base  opposite  the  apex  of  the 
other,  and  is  affixed  to  a  shaft,  K2,  communicating  immedi- 
ately with  the  first  mover.  M,  is  the  belt  which  connects 
the  two  cones,  and  by  the  unwinding  of  which  from  the  larger 
end  of  one  cone  upon  the  smaller  end  of  the  other,  or  vice 
versa ,  with  the  help  of  a  guide,  in  the  known  manner  of 
working  such  alternate  cones,  motion  is  communicated  to  the 
shaft,  K1,  and  is  retarded,  or  accelerated,  or  kept  at  one  con- 
stant rate,  according  as  may  be  desired.  N,  is  the  pulley  to 
which  the  power  of  the  engine  is  directly  applied.  Instead 
of  one  friction  disc  only  (I,)  being  made  use  of,  two  such  discs 
may  be  employed,  if  found  needful,  with  an  additional  fric- 
tion cone  between  them,  the  better  to  equalize  the  action  of 
the  rubbing  parts ;  but  in  that  case  the  additional  disc  and 
cone  must  turn  loosely  in  their  own  bearings.  Instead  also  of 
the  vertical  shaft  B,  being  stepped  at  bottom,  in  the  manner 
represented  in  fig.  1,  the  arrangement  shown  in  fig.  2,  may  be 
adopted.  The  bottom  of  the  shaft  is  surrounded,  immediately 
above  the  step,  with  a  loose  ring,  m,  and  that  ring  with  a 
quantity  of  small  shot,  or  other  granulated  substance,  the 
whole  being  enclosed  in  a  box,  n,  the  bottom  of  which  forms 


486 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  step.  In  the  top  of  this  box  there  is  an  opening,  into 
which  a  collar,  p,  on  the  shaft,  dips,  when  the  machine  is  at 
rest ;  and  when  the  drum,  C,  is  raised  by  the  action  of  the 
governor,  D,  the  collar  is  also  raised  out  of  its  place,  when  the 
shot,  yielding  to  the  sideward  movement  of  the  shaft,  enables 
it  to  adjust  itself  to  any  change  in  the  centre  of  gravity. 

Another  machine  for  stretching,  and  also  for  drying,  is  rep- 
resented at  figs.  3,  and  4  ;  fig.  3,  being  a  side  elevation,  and 
fig.  4,  a  cross  section  of  the  machine.  A,  is  the  foundation 
plate.  B,  (see  fig.  4,)  is  an  axis,  which  turns  in  bearings  in 
the  front  part  of  the  standards,  c,  c.  The  parts  a1,  a2,  a3,  are 
plain ;  the  parts  6,  6,  are  a  little  raised  above  the  others,  and 
are  cut,  the  one  with  a  left-handed,  and  the  other  with  a 
right-handed  screw  upon  it.  D,  D,  D,  D,  are  a  number  of 
wire  hoops,  over  which  the  cloth  or  other  material  is  to  be 
stretched,  each  consisting  of  four,  five,  or  more  rings  of  tinned 
iron  wire,  secured  together  by  transverse  slips  of  metal  (simi- 
lar to  the  wire  sides  of  the  drum  before  described),  each  of 
which  is  attached  by  radial  arms  to  a  separate  collar,  which 
slides  on  the  smooth  central  part  a2,  of  the,  axis,  B.  The 
hoops,  when  brought  together,  have  the  appearance  of  one 
continuous  drum,  but  are  free  to  separate  a  little  in  the  course 
of  the  working  of  the  machine.  E,  E,  are  two  ventilators, 
of  the  form  shown  separately  at  fig.  5 ;  these  ventilators  are 
attached  to  moveable  collars,  with  female  screws  inside,  which 
work  on  the  screwed  parts,  b,  b,  of  the  axis,  B,  and  may  be 
brought  up  more  or  less  close  to  the  series  of  hoops.  On  the 
rims  of  these  ventilators  there  are  rows  of  pins,  to  which  the 
selvages  of  the  cloth  or  other  article  to  be  stretched  may  be 
secured.  In  the  centre  of  each  ventilator  an  orifice  is  left,  for 
the  introduction,  by  means  of  a  moveable  pipe  or  pipes,  F,  F, 
of  a  supply  of  steam  or  hot  air  into  the  interior  of  the  hoops, 
round  which  the  goods  are  stretched.  G,  G,  are  rings,  of  the 
form  shown  on  an  enlarged  scale  at  fig.  6,  which,  when  the 
cloth  or  other  article  has  been  wound  round  the  hoops,  and 
secured  to  the  pins  on  the  peripheries  of  the  ventilators,  fit 
upon  these  peripheries,  and  interlock  with  and  support  the 
pins.   It  will  now  be  seen,  that  if  rotary  motion  is  communi- 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


487 


cated  to  the  axis  B,  and  the  drum  is  secured  from  turning  by 
any  convenient  means,  the  ventilators  will  each  have  a  ten- 
dency to  move  in  an  outward  direction  from  each  other,  and 
thus  cause  a  continued  stretching  of  the  goods  laterally.  To 
keep  the  goods  at  the  degree  of  tension  required,  and  prevent 
the  ventilators  from  returning,  there  are  two  coupling  pieces, 
each  furnished  on  their  inner  surface  with  a  small  stud,  which 
slides  in  a  groove  cut  on  each  of  the  screwed  parts,  6,  b,  of  the 
shaft,  B,  and  having  projecting  sides,  which  take  into  corres- 
ponding recesses  formed  on  the  collars  of  the  ventilators,  are 
pushed  forward.  But,  besides  being  stretched  laterally,  the 
goods  may  require  to  be  stretched  longitudinally,  and  for  this 
purpose  the  machine  is  provided  with  the  additional  parts 
next  to  be  described.  K1,  K2,  and  K3,  are  three  cross  rods  or 
poles,  fixed  between  the  stops  of  the  standards,  C,  C,  (see 
fig.  3,)  in  a  triangular  position,  as  regards  one  another.  L1, 
L2,  are  two  bars  which  turn  freely  in  bearings  in  the  back  of 
the  standards,  C,  C,  and  carry  each  two  rollers,  one  at  either 
end,  which  are  connected  by  an  endless  band,  armed  with  a 
number  of  small  projecting  teeth.  M,  is  a  roller,  which  turns 
on  an  axis  between  the  standards,  C,  C.  N,  N,  are  two  lon- 
gitudinal rods,  which  turn  freely  in  bearings  in  the  back 
of  the  standards,  C,  C,  at  one  end,  and  in  the  shorter  stand- 
ards, O,  O,  at  the  other  end,  and  are  cut  with  a  thread  upon 
them  of  a  progressively  decreasing  pitch  from  C,  C,  towards 
0,0.  P,  P,  are  tubes,  which  slide  on  the  rods,  N,  N,  having 
a  catch,  o,  projecting  from  the  inside,  which  takes  into  the 
threads  on  these  rods.*  R,  S,  are  two  additional  rollers,  which 
turn  in  bearings  raised  upon  the  top  of  the  sliding  tubes,  P, 
P,  and  are  connected  together  at  their  ends  by  bands,  in  the 
manner  shown  in  the  figure.  The  roller  R,  has  a  number  of 
bristles  affixed  to  it,  for  the  purpose  of  brushing  the  goods  as 
they  pass  in  contact  with  it.  The  drum  or  cylinder  of  hoops, 
D,  before  described,  is  connected  with  the  roller,  M,  by  wheel- 
gearing,  in  the  manner  shown  in  the  drawings,  and  these 


*  When  we  say,  P,  P,  or,  O,  O,  and  only  one  letter  is  shown  in  the  figure,  we, 
of  course,  mean  to  be  understood  as  referring  to  both  sides  of  the  machine. 


488 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


again  with  the  longitudinal  shafts,  N,  N,  which  carry  the 
other  rollers,  R,  S,  by  means  of  bevil-wheel  gearing.  The 
distance  between  the  roller,  M,  and  the  rollers,  R,  S,  must  be 
regulated  at  starting,  according  to  the  degree  of  stretching  re- 
quired to  be  given  to  the  goods.  To  the  roller  M,  a  tacking- 
piece  must  be  permanently  fixed,  to  which  the  goods  may  be 
attached  ;  this  tacking-piece  must  be  equal  in  length  to  a  line 
carried  from  the  bottom  of  the  roller,  M,  round  the  roller,  S, 
and  back  to  the  hoop -cylinder,  D. 

The  following  is  the  operation  of  the  entire  machine  : — 
The  wheels  being  first  thrown  out  of  gear,  by  means  of  two 
small  levers,  I,  I,  attached  to  the  inner  ends  of  the  longitudi- 
nal rods,  N,  N,  (see  fig.  3) ;  one  end  of  the  goods  is  carried 
over  the  fixed  poles,  K1,  K2,  and  K3,  in  the  manner  shewn,  and 
thence  down  the  face  of  the  endless  roller-bands,  L1,  L2,  the 
teeth  of  which  catch  into  the  selvages  of  the  goods,  and 
serve  to  keep  them  evenly  distended  in  the  direction  of  their 
width.  The  goods  pass  from  the  endless  bands  to  the  roller, 
M,  and  are  then  joined  to  the  tacking-piece  on  the  roller,  upon 
which  they  are  then  wound,  by  means  of  the  winch-handle 
attached  to  its  axis.  The  bevil-wheels  are  then  put  into 
gear  again.  The  endless  band-rollers,  L1,  and  L2,  are  brought 
into  a  horizontal  position,  the  cloth  unwound  from  the  roller 
M,  and  carried  under  and  over  the  roller  S,  whence  it  is  car- 
ried back,  in  a  direct  line,  to  the  drying  cylinder  of  hoops,  D, 
and  in  its  progress  comes  into  contact  with  the  brushes  on 
the  face  of  the  cylinder,  R,  and  is  again  caught  at  the  sel- 
vages by  the  teeth  of  the  endless  bands,  L1,  L2.  By  turning 
the  screw-threaded  horizontal  rods,  N,  N,  by  means  of  the 
winch-handles  at  the  ends,  any  required  degree  of  tension 
may  be  given  to  the  goods  ;  for,  according  as  these  rods  are 
turned  in  one  direction  or  the  other,  the  sliding-tubes,  P,  P,  are 
caused  to  recede  or  advance,  and  the  rollers,  R,  S,  along  with 
them.  After  the  goods  have  been  all  wound  on  to  the  hooped 
cylinder  D,  the  wheels  are  thrown  out  of  gear,  and  the  cylin- 
der D,  is  made  to  revolve  by  itself.  When  hot  air  is  used  to 
assist  the  drying,  and  the  goods  are  put  into  the  machine  in 
a  damp  state,  the  hot  air  should  not  be  introduced  till  after 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


489 


*he  principal  part  of  the  moisture  has  been  driven  off  by  the 
eentifrugal  process.  For  the  purpose  of  better  maintaining 
the  equilibrium  of  the  machine,  a  ring  or  girdle,  T,  containing 
water,  or  any  other  suitable  fluid,  similar  to  that  before  de- 
scribed, is  introduced  inside  the  hoops,  in  the  manner  shewn 
at  fig.  4. ;  the  goods,  being  wound  on  the  drum  or  cylinder,  D, 
are  ready  to  be  stretched  laterally,  as  before  described.  The 
drum  may  then  be  disconnected  from  the  intermediate  wheel, 
X,  of  the  gearing,  and  a  swift  rotary  motion  being  given  to  its 
axis,  the  liquid  particles  contained  in  the  goods  will  be  driven 
off  by  the  centrifugal  action,  as  before  described  under  the 
first  head  of  the  improvements.  Although  the  drum,  D,  is 
shewn  in  the  drawings  in  a  horizontal  position,  it  will  be  bet- 
ter, where  drying  is  the  chief  object,  to  place  it  in  an  upright 
position,  and  then  connect  it  with  driving  machinery,  such  as 
is  described  under  the  first  head  of  the  improvements.  The 
outer  cylinder,  in  which  the  drum  is  encased,  and  which 
should  be  some  inches  larger  in  diameter,  has  a  pipe  at  the 
bottom,  for  the  purpose  of  admitting  steam,  and  another  for 
the  admission  of  heated  air.  It  is  further  provided  with  a 
tap  at  bottom,  for  drawing  off  the  liquid  which  collects  there. 
After  the  greater  part  of  the  water  has  been  thrown  off  by 
the  centrifugal  action,  a  supply  of  steam  is  admitted,  for  the 
purpose  of  heating  the  goods  previous  to  the  admission  of  the 
heated  air. 

This  machine  is  being  very  generally  adopted  throughout 
Great  Britain.  Indeed,  it  is  rapidly  superseding  every  other 
machine  for  drying  cotton  goods. 

62 


CHAPTER  HI, 


HECENT  INVENTIONS  AND  IMPROVEMENTS  IN  DYE 
ING  AND  CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES. 

BLOCK  -PRINTING,  HAND  AND  POWER. 

I.  The  first  series  of  improvements,*  are  of  the  invention 
of  Augustus  Applegarth,  of  Crayford,  Kent,  and  consist  io 
certain  contrivances  and  machinery  for  facilitating  block- 
printing. 

In  Plates  III.  and  IV.,  Fig.  1;  is  the  third  side  of  a  machine 
for  printing  six  colors. 

Fig.  2,  is  the  opposite  side  of  the  machine. 

Fig.  3,  is  an  end  elevation  of  the  same. 

Fig.  4.  is  a  plan  of  the  upper  parts  thereof.  The  same 
letters  refer  to  the  similar  parts  in  all  the  figures.  A,  A,  is  the 
cast-iron  frame  ;  B,  B,  the  moveable  frames  or  heads  to  which 
the  block-tables,  C,  C,  are  attached  by  means  of  hinges,  which 
permit  the  block-tables  to  be  turned  over  when  the  blocks  re- 
quire brushing,  &c.  D,  D,  are  the  blocks  which  are  cut,  cast, 
coppered,  pinned,  or  engraved  in  the  usual  manner.  They 
are  fixed  to  the  block-tables  by  means  of  screws  or  T  headed 
holders,  as  further  explained  in  the  diagrams,  figs.  5,  6,  7, 
and  8.  E,  is  the  impression-table,  which  is  made  of  cast-iron 
or  stone,  and  which  should  be  flat,  solid,  and  heavy,  in  order 
to  receive  the  blow  or  impression.  At  each  end  of  the  im- 
pression-table is  a  roller,  which  serves  to  guide  the  cloth  to 
and  from  the  impression-table.  F,  F,  are  the  rubber-carriages, 
which  support  the  rubbers,  G,  G,  in  the  notches  ;  the  under 
surface  of  the  rubber-carriages  is  made  with  inclined  planes, 
so  that  when  the  carriages  advance  they  lift  the  rubbers  one 


*  Patented  in  November,  1836. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


491 


quarter  of  an  inch.  H,  H,  are  the  hammers  or  mauls  which 
give  the  impressing  blow  to  the  block-tables,  C,  C.  The  ham 
mers  are  fixed  to  the  wrought-iron  shafts,  I,  I,  by  means  of 
the  sockets  and  binding-screws,  which  permit  them  to  be  ad 
justed  so  as  to  strike  the  block-tables  simultaneously.  K,  the 
feeding-drum  which  advances  the  printing-cloth  and  the  mate 
rial  to  be  printed,  and  its  periphery  should  contain  or  be  divisible 
into  any  certain  number  of  spaces,  each  equal  to  the  set  of  the 
blocks  or  the  quantity  of  cloth  which  each  block  prints  at  one 
impression  in  this  machine  :  it  contains  fifteen  spaces  of  three 
inches  each,  which  is  the  set  of  the  pattern  here  shewn.  The 
feeding-drum  is  furnished  with  a  wheel,  L,  having  ninety 
teeth,  or  half-inch  pitch,  and  it  has  also  fifteen  stop-pins  ac- 
curately pitched,  which  regulate  and  govern  the  advance  or 
feeding  in  of  the  cloth  and  the  material  to  be  printed,  and 
upon  the  correctness  of  which  the  joining  of  the  pattern  de- 
pends. M,  is  a  double  pinion,  or  two  pinions  fixed  upon  the 
same  axes  :  the  small  pinion  has  twenty-four  teeth,  and  is 
always  in  gear  with  the  wheel,  L  :  the  larger  pinion  has  forty- 
eight  teeth,  and  is  furnished  with  four  arms  :  it  is  occasionally 
driven  by  the  toothed  segment,  N,  which  is  furnished  with  a 
curved  wiper,  which  acts  against  the  arms  of  the  larger  pin- 
ion, M.  O,  is  a  segment  within  the  frame,  A,  which  occasion- 
ally comes  in  contact  with  the  small  wheel  or  roller,  P.  The 
segment,  O,  and  the  roller,  P,  are  made  of  wood,  and  are  cov- 
ered with  coarse  cloth,  so  as  to  produce  motion  by  the  pres- 
sure of  their  surfaces  against  each  other  without  teeth.  Upon 
the  spindle  of  P,  two  band-pulleys  are  fixed,  which  occasion- 
ally give  a  backward  and  forward  motion  to  the  rubber-car- 
riages, F,  F,  by  means  of  their  catgut  bands.  Q,,  is  another 
wheel  or  roller  clothed  as  P,  against  which  the  clothed  seg- 
ment, O,  acts  as  soon  as  it  has  left  P.  Upon  the  axis  of  the 
roller,  Q,,  is  a  band-pulley,  which  carries  a  crossed  band  to 
another  pulley  fixed  upon  the  spindle,  P,  whereby  the  motion 
of  the  spindle  of  P,  and  its  band-pulleys  is  reversed,  and  the 
rubber-carriages  are  drawn  back.  R,  R,  are  small  grooved 
pulleys  which  guide  the  catgut  bands.  S,  is  a  roller  which 
binds  or  confines  the  printing-cloth  to  the  feeding-drum,  K. 


492 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


T,  is  a  similar  roller,  which  binds  the  oil-skin  and  the  mate- 
rial to  be  printed  in  like  manner  to  the  feeding-drum,  K, 
so  that  they  are  conveyed  by  the  feeding-drum  without  any 
drag  or  stoppage.  Y,  is  a  pall  which  acts  against  the  division- 
pins  of  the  feeding-drum  wheel,  L.  The  printing-cloth  or 
blanket  is  made  endless,  and  passes  from  the  feeding-drum 
across  the  impression-table,  and  over  the  roller  at  the  leaving 
end  of  the  impression-table,  turning  under  the  impression- 
table  to  the  roller,  S,  and  the  drum,  L.  The  oil-skin  is  also 
made  endless,  and  passes  over  the  roller,  T,  to  the  feeding- 
drum,  then  over  the  roller  at  the  entering  end  of  the  impres- 
sion-table, across  the  table  over  the  roller  at  the  leaving  end 
of  the  table,  and  away  from  the  machine,  in  the  manner 
shewn  in  the  diagram,  fig.  9.  The  cloth,  silk,  or  material  to 
be  printed,  is  first  supplied  from  a  roller  in  the  usual  manner. 
The  cloth,  &c,  is  conveyed  to  the  impression-table  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner : — The  toothed  segment,  N,  moves  the  pinions, 
M,  one  quarter  of  their  circumference,  which  causes  the  feed- 
ing-drum to  advance  as  much  as  is  equal  to  one  set  or  im- 
pression of  the  pattern  cut  upon  the  blocks,  and  a  little  more, 
so  that  the  division-pin  may  pass  the  end  of  the  pall,  V,  just 
so  much  as  to  admit  it  to  fall  behind  the  pin,  when  the  elas- 
ticity of  the  cloth,  &c,  will  draw  the  drum  and  wheel  a  little 
back,  until  the  pall  stops  the  pin,  and  holds  the  drum  and  the 
materials  upon  it  firm  and  steady  during  the  impression. 
W,  W,  are  wrought-iron  bars  moving  up  and  down  in  guides  ; 
they  are  connected  with  the  moveable  heads,  B,  B,  and  are 
furnished  with  friction  pulleys,  V,  V,  against  which  the  cams 
act,  and  occasionally  raise  and  depress  the  heads,  B,  B,  and 
the  blocks  :  their  brass  guides  are  seen  in  fig.  L  X,  X,  are 
the  depresssing  cams.  Y,  Y,  are  the  lifting  cams  ;  they  are 
fixed  on  the  spindles  of  the  wheels.  Z,  Z,  are  counter- weights, 
and  their  levers,  they  serve  to  counterpoise  the  bars,  W,  W, 
and  the  heads,  B,  B,  and  thus  steady  and  soften  the  up-and- 
down  motion.  The  wheels,  q,  q,  q,  are  in  gear  with  each 
other,  and  have  seventy-two  teeth  of  one  inch  pitch,  a,  a, 
are  cams,  which  occasionally  depress  the  pulleys  and  levers, 
b,  6,  which  are  connected  with  the  rods,  c,  c,  the  upper-ends 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


493 


of  which  are  made  to  loop  over,  and  embrace  the  arms,  d,  d, 
of  the  hammer-shafts,  I,  I.  When  the  full  part  of  the  cams, 
a,  a,  depress  the  levers,  6,  b,  the  rods,  c,  c,  draw  the  arms, 
d,  d,  in  a  downward  direction,  and  raise  the  hammers  to  the 
position  shewn  in  fig.  1,  and  they  are  detained  in  this  position 
by  means  of  the  hooked-levers,  e,  e,  which  move  on  the  pins, 
/,  /.  On  the  cams,  a,  a,  are  detaching  pins,  g,  g,  which 
occasionally  raise  the  lower  ends  of  the  hooked-levers,  e,  e, 
and  cause  them  to  let  go  the  arms,  d,  d,  of  the  hammer- 
shafts,  I,  I,  when  the  hammers  fall  by  their  own  gravity,  and 
give  the  impressing  blow  upon  the  block-tables,  C,  C,  C.  The 
force  of  the  hammers  may  be  increased  by  circular  weights, 
having  a  central  hole  to  fit  on  the  head  of  the  hammer,  one 
of  such  weights  is  seen  in  fig.  1.  h,  h,  are  counter-weights, 
which  overbalance  the  rods,  c,  c,  and  the  levers,  6,  b,  and 
thus  keep  the  looped  ends  of  the  rods  clear  of  the  arms,  d,  d, 
when  they  rise  on  the  fall  of  the  hammers. 

The  blocks  are  supplied  with  color,  in  the  following  man- 
ner :  i,  i,  is  the  sieve-frame,  containing  the  sieves  or  color 
surfaces,  j  ;  they  are  made  of  waterproof  cloth,  or  any  suit- 
able material  that  will  not  suffer  the  color  to  pass  through  ; 
k,  k,  k,  are  brushes  to  spread  or  distribute  the  color,  called 
teering-brushes,  they  are  attached  to  the  cross-bar,  I,  which  is 
furnished  with  a  small  friction-roller,  m,  against  which  the 
inclined  planes,  n}  n:  act,  as  the  sieve-frame  advances,  and  by 
which  means  the  brushes  can  be  lifted  clear  of  the  ends  of 
the  sieves,  and  sieve-frame,  and  the  length  of  their  contact 
with  the  sieves  determined.  To  assist  the  action  of  the  teer- 
ing-brushes, a  cross-bar  of  wood  or  iron,  padded  with  a  blan- 
ket, and  covered  with  a  piece  of  oil-silk,  may  be  fixed  under 
the  sieves  to  the  side-bars  upon  which  the  sieve-frame  slides, 
which  will  bear  the  sieves  up  as  they  slide  between  the  cross 
pad  and  the  brushes,  and  better  enable  the  brushes  to  teer 
out  and  obliterate  the  impression  of  the  blocks  upon  the 
sieves,  o,  is  a  catgut  band-pulley,  which  revolves  upon  an 
axis  fixed  to  the  frame,  and  motion  is  occasionally  given  to  it 
by  the  clothed  segments,  p,  and  p*,  which  are  fixed  to  the 
wheels,  q,  q,  by  acting  against  the  clothed  wheel,  r,  which  is 


494 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


fixed  upon  the  axis  of  0,  which  is  furnished  with  two  arms,  s, 
and  s*,  against  which  the  pins,  t,  t*  of  the  clothed  segment 
act,  and  thus  ensure  the  starting  of  the  band-pulley,  and  the 
sieves  at  the  proper  times.  The  action  of  the  machine  is  as 
follows : — The  cam,  Y,  having  raised  the  moveable  heads, 
B,  B,  and  the  blocks,  from  the  impression-table,  E,  as  shown 
in  fig.  1,  the  segment,  p,  is  shown  with  its  starting-pin  in 
contact  with  the  arm,  s,  of  the  wheel,  r,  of  the  band-pulley,  0, 
which  as  it  moves,  will  draw  the  sieve-frame,  i,  i,  and  its 
sieves,  under  the  blocks  with  the  colored  surface  of  the  sieves, 
about  one  inch  below  the  engraved  surface  of  the  blocks. 
The  cams,  X,  X,  will  then  in  their  progress,  press  against 
the  lower  friction  pulleys  of  the  rods,  W,  W,  and  depress 
them,  and  the  heads,  B,  B,  with  the  block-tables  and  blocks, 
nearly  one  inch,  so  as  to  bring  the  engraved  surfaces  of  the 
blocks  slightly  into  contact  with  the  color  upon  the  sieves, 
but,  by  no  means  to  press  upon  the  sieves  themselves.  The 
segment,  O,  will  then  come  in  contact  with  the  small  friction- 
wheel,  P,  and  cause  it  to  revolve  with  its  band-pulleys,  which 
will,  by  means  of  their  catgut  bands,  draw  the  rubber-car- 
riages, F,  F,  forward.  The  under  sides  of  the  rubber-carriages 
are  furnished  with  small  inclined  planes,  which  as  they 
advance,  raise  them  and  cause  the  elastic  surfaces  of  the 
rubbers  to  press  against  the  under  side  of  the  sieves,  and  thus 
as  the  rubbers  move,  they  complete  the  contact  of  the  colored 
sieves  with  the  engraved  blocks,  whereby  a.  proper  portion  of 
color  is  transferred  from  one  to  the  other,  the  action  of  the 
machine  continuing.  The  segment,  O,  will  next  act  against 
the  small  wheel,  Q,,  which  by  means  of  its  crossed  band  will 
reverse  the  motion  of  the  wheel,  P,  and  cause  its  band-pul- 
leys to  draw  the  rubber-carriages  back  into  their  former  posi- 
tion. The  segment,  p*,  will  then  act  against  the  arm,  s*,  of 
the  wheel,  r,  and  thus  cause  the  band-pulley,  0,  to  draw  the 
sieve-frame  back  to  its  former  position,  as  seen  in  figs.  3  and 
4.  The  detaching-pins  will  then  disengage  the  hooked-levers 
from  the  arms  on  the  hammer-shafts,  and  the  blow,  or  im- 
pression, will  take  place,  and  thus  each  block  will  print  cloth 
equal  to  its  own  size,  or  set,  at  one  revolution  of  the  wheels, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


495 


£j  q.  The  full  part  of  the  depressing  cams,  X,  X,  having 
previously  caused  the  heads,  B,  B,  and  the  blocks  to  descend 
upon  the  material  on  the  impression-table. 

Fig.  5,  represents  the  back  of  a  printing-block,  with  three 
iron  strengthening  plates  let  into  the  wood,  which  have  gaps 
in  them  to  receive  the  T,  holding-screws  and  nuts,  which  are 
seen  in  fig.  6,  fixing  the  block,  D,  to  the  block-table,  C. 

Figs.  6,  and  7,  show  a  convenient  method  of  connecting 
the  block-tables,  C,  with  the  moveable  heads,  B,  B,  before  de  - 
scribed, a,  a,  are  flat-plates  of  wrought  iron,  one-eighth  of 
an  inch  thick,  which  are  firmly  screwed  to  the  ends  of  the 
block-tables.  6,  6,  are  pins  rivetted  into  the  hinges,  c,  c,  and 
screwed  to  fit  the  thumb-nuts,  d,  d  ;  the  holes  in  the  plates, 
a,  a,  are  larger  than  the  pins,  b,  b,  to  admit  a  little  motion  foi 
adjusting  the  blocks.  The  hinges,  c,  c,  are  firmly  fixed  at 
one  end  to  the  moveable-heads  by  the  screws,  e,  e,  at  the 
other  end  they  are  held  by  the  thumb-screws,  /,  /. 

Fig.  8,  is  a  diagram  of  the  moveable-heads  and  block- 
tables,  with  one  of  the  tables  reversed.  In  order  to  bring  the 
face  of  the  block  in  view,  one  set  of  the  hammers  is  thrown 
back  out  of  the  way,  which  is  done  by  partly  unscrewing  the 
binding-screw,  in  the  socket  of  the  arm,  d,  which  then  per- 
mits the  hammer-shaft  to  be  moved  round. 

Fig.  9,  is  a  diagram  in  which  instead  of  a  rubber,  as  before 
described,  a  roller  is  used  to  make  the  contact  between  the 
sieve,  or  color-surface,  and  the  block.  B,  is  part  of  the  move- 
able head.  C,  the  block-table,  i,  i,  part  of  the  sieve-frame, 
and  D,  is  the  block  which  is  retained  near  the  color  surface, 
but  not  in  contact  with  it.  R,  is  the  roller,  which  may  be 
made  of  wood,  or  of  brass  tube,  and  is  covered  with  elastic 
composition,  made  of  molasses  and  glue,  commonly  used  in 
letter-press  printing  machines,  and  it  is  then  covered  with 
water-proof  cloth,  the  roller  revolves  freely  upon  its  axis,  and 
may  be  made  to  press  up  against  the  sieve  by  counter- 
weights, or  springs.  The  contact  of  the  color-surface  and 
block,  takes  place  only  where  the  roller  raises  the  sieve  as  it 
passes  backward  and  forward,  and  this  modification  of  the 
coloring  apparatus  is  preferable,  when  the  blocks  are  very 


496 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


finely  cut,  or  coppered.  A  slight  degree  of  elasticity  is  re- 
quired in  the  sieve,  which  may  be  given  either  by  lacing  the 
sieve  to  the  sieve-frame,  with  India-rubber  bobbin,  or  by  at- 
taching it  with  fine  spiral  springs,  or  by  any  other  convenient 
method. 

Fig.  10,  shows  a  rubber  detached  from  the  machine  before 
described.  It  consists  of  a  cast-iron  trough,  holding  a  flexible 
or  yielding  waterproof  tube,  nearly  filled  with  water,  or  any 
other  fluid  that  will  not  permeate  the  tube,  and  securely 
closed  at  either  end,  so  as  perfectly  to  retain  the  enclosed 
fluid.  The  tube  can  be  securely  retained  in  its  position  in  the 
trough,  by  enclosing  both  in  a  covering  of  thin  linen  cloth 
sowed  together,  and  the  firmness  of  its  action  or  touch  against 
the  sieve,  can  be  easily  regulated  by  tying  the  ends  more  or 
less,  so  as  either  to  increase  or  diminish  its  capacity,  and  con- 
sequent resistance,  without  either  removing  or  injecting  more 
fluid. 

In  figs.  1,  2,  3,  and  4,  the  colors  are  supposed  to  be  supplied 
by  two  boys,  one  standing  on  each  side  of  the  sieve-frame,  as 
the  teering-brushes,  which  are  attached  to  the  bar,  I,  only 
spread  or  distribute  the  color,  but  do  not  supply  it. 

Fig.  11,  shows  a  method  by  which  the  teering-brushes  may 
themselves  supply  the  color  to  the  sieves.  B,  is  the  move- 
able head,  and  its  block,  i,  i,  is  the  sieve-frame.  When  the 
sieve-frame  has  run  in  under  the  blocks  to  supply  them  with 
color,  the  bar  I,  and  its  teering-brushes,  may  be  lowered 
down  by  means  of  its  friction-pulley,  m,  and  the  inclined  plane, 
Zj  brought  into  contact  with  the  rollers,  s, s,  in  the  color-boxes, 
t,  t ;  the  quantity  of  color  on  the  roller,  s,  can  be  regulated  by 
the  padded  straight-edge,  v,  which  may  be  adjusted,  and  held 
by  the  screws,  z}  and  the  color-roller,  s.  should  have  a  very 
slow  motion  around  their  axes,  to  renew  the  color  taken  from 
it  by  the  teering-brushes.  In  this  case,  the  pad  beneath  the 
teering-brushes  may  be  removed,  and  double  sets  of  brushes, 
as  shown  in  the  drawing,  may  be  used  if  required. 

Fig.  12,  is  a  side  view  of  an  apparatus  for  applying  the 
color  to  a  hand-block,  such  as  is  used  by  block-printers. 

Fig.  13,  is  an  end  view  of  the  same. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES.  497 

Fig.  14,  is  a  plan  thereof.  The  same  letters  refer  to  the 
similar  parts  in  each  figure.  A,  is  the  cast-iron  frame.  B,  the 
block.  C,  the  sieve  or  color  surface.  D,  the  teering-brush, 
which  is  fixed  to  the  cross-bar,  E,  which  serves  also  to  con- 
nect the  side  standards,  F,  F,  the  under  sides  of  which  are 
furnished  with  projections  which  enter  into  the  slide-passage, 
Z,  made  between  the  frame  and  the  top  bar,  G,  G.  The 
side  standards,  F,  F,  are  further  connected  by  a  stretcher-bar 
or  rod.  H,  is  the  color-trough ;  I,  the  roller,  the  color  on 
which  is  regulated  by  the  padded  straight-edge.  K,  L,  is  a 
padded  board,  which  also  moves  freely  in  the  slide-passage, 
Z,  and  serves  to  support  the  sieve  when  the  brushes  pass  over 
it.  M,  is  the  contact-rubber,  made  as  described  in  fig.  10,  and 
it  also  moves  or  slides  freely  in  the  passage,  Z.  N,  N,  are 
small  grooved  pulleys,  which  guide  the  catgut  bands.  O,  is 
a  segment  covered  with  cloth,  and  fixed  upon  the  spindle,  P. 
As  it  revolves  it  moves  the  clothed  wheel,  Q,,  and  causes  it 
and  its  spindle,  and  the  fly-pulleys,  R,  R,  fixed  upon  the  spin- 
dle, to  revolve  when  it  draws  the  standards,  F,  F,  and  the 
cross-bar,  E,  with  its  teering-brush,  along  the  sieve  in  the  di- 
rection of  the  slide  passage,  Z,  and  thus  imparts  the  color  to 
the  surface  of  the  sieve,  the  block  being  then  used  by  the 
printer  in  impressing  the  material.  As  the  standards  advance, 
their  projections,  which  slide  in  the  passage,  Z,  come  in  con- 
tact with  the  ends  of  the  pad,  L,  and  push  it  along  the  slide, 
the  teering-brushes  being  then  in  contact  with  the  upper  sur- 
face of  the  sieve,  and  the  pad,  which  is  directly  beneath  them, 
in  contact  with  the  under  surface  of  the  sieve,  and  thus  the 
sieve  receives  its  color,  and  the  mark  or  impression  made  by 
the  pattern  of  the  block  is  effectually  obliterated  or  teered  out. 
When  the  segment,  O,  has  left  the  roller,  Q,,  it  acts  against 
the  reversing-roller,  S,  which  is  fixed  to  its  spindle,  as  is  also 
a  small  fly-pulley,  T,  which  carries  a  catgut  band  to  V,  which 
is  similar  to  the  pulley  upon  the  spindle  R,  and  thus  the  mo- 
tion of  the  fly-pulley,  R,  becomes  reversed,  which  returns  the 
standards,  F,  F,  and  the  teering-brushes,  back  to  their  situa- 
tion over  the  color-roller.  The  pad,  L,  is  also  drawn  back  by 
the  standards,  E,  E,  by  means  of  the  spring-catches  or  hooks, 

63 


498  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

a,  which  move  upon  pins,  p,  fixed  to  the  standards,  and  they 
act  upon  the  small  projecting  studs,  b,  6,  at  the  ends  of  the 
pad,  and  thus  hold  it  during  the  return  motion,  until  the  pad 
is  stopped  by  the  stop-pins,  c,  c,  fixed  to  the  frame,  when  the 
spring-catches  rise  up  the  bevel-edge  of  the  stud,  6,  and  leave 
the  pad  in  its  first  situation,  as  shown  in  fig.  12.  In  order 
that  the  spring-catches  may  not,  during  the  advance,  strike 
the  pad-studs,  b,  and  push  the  pad  before  it,  the  catgut  bands 
which  draw  the  standards  are  attached  to  eyes  fixed  in  the 
catches,  which  raise  their  ends  over  the  studs,  b,  b,  so  that  the 
pad  is  only  acted  upon  by  the  spring-catches  during  the  re- 
turn.. The  spring-catch  is  shown  by  the  side  of  fig.  12,  on 
an  enlarged  scale.  W,  is  also  a  clothed  roller,  having  upon 
its  spindle  a  fly-pulley,  which  carries  a  crossed-band  to  a  simi- 
lar fly-pulley  upon  the  spindle  of  X,  which  draws  the  contact- 
rubber,  M,  backward  and  forward  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
standards  just  described,  the  rubber  having  less  distance  to 
travel  than  the  brushes,  its  fly-pulleys,  X,  X,  may  be  propor- 
tionably  smaller. 

In  connecting  the  coloring-machine  with  the  driving  power, 
it  would  be  convenient  so  to  arrange  it  that  the  printer  may 
stop  and  start  it  as  he  requires,  by  placing  his  foot  upon  a 
treadle  or  treadles  connected  with  the  clutch  or  driving- 
pulleys. 

Fig.  15,  shows  an  arrangement  of  the  sieves,  in  which  they 
enter  sideways  under  the  blocks.  B,  is  the  moveable  head. 
C,  C,  are  the  block-tables.  D,  D,  are  the  blocks,  as  before 
described.  £,  i,  the  sieve-frames  which  move  towards  each 
other  until  they  meet  in  the  centre  between  the  blocks,  when 
the  color  is  applied  to  the  blocks  in  the  manner  before  descri- 
bed, and  the  backward  and  forward  motion  of  the  sieve-frame 
may  also  be  produced  by  segments  and  band-pullies.  The 
feeding  in  of  the  cloth,  and  the  mode  of  giving  the  impres- 
sion, is  likewise  made  in  the  same  manner  as  hereinbefore 
explained.  In  this  form  of  machine,  and  in  that  described 
in  figs.  1  and  2,  the  material  to  be  printed  is  supplied  to  the 
feeding-drum  from  a  roller,  having  a  quantity  of  the  material 
around  it,  in  the  ordinary  manner  of  copper-plate  presses  and 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


499 


cylinder-machines,  and  after  the  material  has  left  the  ma- 
chine printed,  it  is  carried  away  by  the  common  methods  over 
and  under  guide-rollers,  the  position  of  which,  as  well  as  of 
the  course  of  the  material,  must  depend  upon  the  situation 
where  the  machine  is  worked  or  placed.  The  course  of  the 
printing-cloth  or  impression-blanket  is  shown  in  figs.  1  and 
2.  It  is  to  be  observed,  that  when  an  endless  oil-silk  is  used 
to  print  upon  the  superfluous  color  which  has  passed  through 
the  material  in  printing,  it  must  be  wiped  off  of  the  oil-silk, 
dried  by  rubbing  it  with  a  dry  cloth,  before  it  returns  to  the 
machine. 

II.  The  second  series  of  improvements*  in  block-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  Robert  Sandiford,  of  Tottington, 
Lancaster,  and  consist,  firstly,  in  the  peculiar  construction  of 
the  block  from  which  the  impressions  are  made  upon  calicos, 
muslins,  silks,  paper,  and  all  other  fabrics  in  the  ordinary  art 
of  block-printing  by  hand.  The  particular  feature  of  novelty 
in  the  construction  of  these  printing  blocks,  is  effected  by 
making  a  light  framework  of  wood,  metal,  or  other  suitable 
material,  carry  the  design  or  pattern  to  be  printed,  instead  of 
having  it  formed  by  "cutting  and  brassing"  upon  a  solid 
block. 

It  is  well  known  to  practical  block-printers,  that  hitherto 
printing  blocks  have  been  exceedingly  limited  in  their  dimen- 
sions, owing  to  any  increase  from  the  usual  size,  making 
them  much  too  heavy  for  the  workmen  to  use ;  and  also  that 
their  liability  to  cast  or  warp  would  be  increased,  whereas, 
even  in  their  present  small  size,  they  are  very  subject  to  split 
and  lose  the  evenness  of  their  surface. 

These  objections  to  the  use  of  large  blocks,  are  completely 
overcome  by  means  of  this  invention.  By  the  use  of  light 
open  frames,  instead  of  solid  blocks,  the  workman  will  be 
enabled  also  to  avail  himself  of  many  other  practical  advan- 
tages ;  for  instance,  the  framework,  or  bed,  is  a  permanent 
block,  upon  the  various  rails  of  which,  can  be  screwed  or 
otherwise  fixed  patterns  or  designs,  and  which  may  be  re- 


*  Patented  in  June,  1838. 


500 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


moved  to  be  replaced  by  others  with  great  facility,  and  also 
make  use  of  the  "  faces  "  or  designs  taken  from  old  blocks  • 
and  by  dividing  or  cutting  them  up,  Mr.  Sandiford  informs  us 
that  he  is  enabled  to  select  any  parts  or  portions  of  such  de- 
signs, and  form  a  whole  or  new  pattern  by  any  desired  ar- 
rangement of  the  dissected  parts  upon  the  frames.  Without 
enlarging  further  upon  the  peculiar  advantages  of  these  im- 
provements we  will  now  proceed  to  refer  to  the  drawing,  in 
order  that  the  practical  effects  of  the  same  may  be  more 
easily  understood. 

Plate  V.,  fig.  1.  represents  a  light  framework  of  wood, 
which  is  substituted  in  place  of  the  solid  block  in  common 
hand  printing  :  this  frame  consists  of  plain  light  rails,  a,  a,  a,  a, 
firmly  secured  together  ;  but  it  is  evident  it  may  be  con- 
structed in  any  other  form,  or  of  any  other  light  material,  as 
light  metal  tubing,  or  any  other  suitable  substance.  Upon 
this  frame  thin  slips  of  wood,  or  other  material,  as  fig.  2, 
having  the  pattern  or  design  intended  to  be  printed,  formed 
upon  them,  are  to  be  screwed  upon  the  frames  in  separate 
rows,  or  any  other  order,  that  shall  produce  the  print  required ; 
as,  for  instance,  if  the  goods  to  be  printed  are  to  be  handker- 
chiefs or  shawls,  for  which  these  improvements  are  particu- 
larly adapted,  then  the  frame  will  have  the  centre  or  filling 
made  up  as  at  b,  b,  in  fig.  3,  and  have  a  complete  border  pattern 
also  fixed  upon  the  frame,  as  at  c,  c,  and  with  one  dip  of  the 
block  produce  the  complete  handkerchief  at  one  impression  ; 
fig.  4,  shows  a  whole  handkerchief  printed  in  one  color  by  a 
single  impression  of  the  block,  and  the  complete  pattern  made 
up  of  small  slips  properly  arranged  upon  the  frame,  a,  a,  a,  a, 
but  which,  by  themselves,  would  only  print  strips.  In  fig.  5, 
d7  d,  represents  the  border  pattern,  and  e,  e,  the  centre  or  fill- 
ing up  pattern.  In  most  cases,  that  is,  in  handkerchiefs  of 
two  feet,  or  two  feet  six  inches  square,  the  workman,  by  these 
means,  is  enabled  to  print  an  entire  handkerchief ;  but  where 
the  shawl  requires  to  be  larger,  or  four  times  that  size,  it 
must  be  produced  by  four  points,  arranged  upon  the  frame  as 
in  fig.  6,  and  the  block  turned  at  every  impression  until  the 
whole  is  completed.    It  will  also  be  very  evident  to  block 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


501 


printers,  that  where  the  impressions  to  be  made  are  for  gar- 
ment cloths,  and  not  for  handkerchiefs,  the  patterns  must  be 
suitably  arranged  upon  the  frames,  and  which  needs  no  fur- 
ther explanation,  as  a  printer  will  be  aware  that  he  may 
make  any  alterations  with  these  improvements  as  the  partic- 
ular arrangement  of  the  pattern  and  colors  may  require  ;  fig. 
7,  is  a  section  taken  through  the  frame  and  pattern. 

Secondly,  in  printing  piece  goods  in  the  entire  length,  these 
improvements  possess  considerable  advantages,  as  an  entire 
piece,  by  the  use  of  these  frames  carrying  the  design  to  be 
printed,  may  be  completed  in  a  few  minutes  in  three  colors 
as  follows  : — Place  three  ordinary  printing  tables,  end  to  end, 
in  one  length,  and  with  three  printers,  each  having  his  own 
block  or  frame  of  the  same  size  square  as  the  width  of  the 
piece  of  goods,  and  also  furnished  with  his  own  sieve  of  color, 
the  first  printer,  with  one  dip,  puts  on  his  object  or  print  in 
the  ground  color,  and  the  cloth  immediately  is  passed  to  the 
second  or  third  printers  to  receive  their  shades  or  colors  upon 
the  same  ground ;  and  thus  the  whole  piece  is  successively 
printed  in  three  or  more  colors  from  end  to  end.  In  order  to 
complete  this  rapid  operation  of  block-printing  with  the  best 
effect,  the  printed  cloths  must  pass  over  a  cylinder  or  drum, 
placed  at  the  end  of  the  last  table,  and  heated  by  steam,  or 
otherwise. 

Lastly,  Mr.  Sandiford  proposes  a  further  improvecl  arrange- 
ment of  the  blocks  connected  with  the  art  of  block-printing, 
by  a  print  or  impression  such  as  is  represented  in  fig.  8.  This 
is  accomplished  by  having  the  print,  /,  /,  /,  and  the  objects, 

g,  g,  and  A,  A,  A,  so  arranged  upon  the  block,  that  by  one 
impression  of  the  same,  three  or  any  number  of  colors  may 
be  printed  from  them,  and  thus  distinct  objects  or  designs, 
and  in  different  colors,  may  be  printed  at  once.  The  sieve 
of  color  upon  which  the  block  or  frame  is  to  be  dipped  before 
printing,  must  be  made  in  three  or  more  compartments,  hav- 
ing partitions,  and  each  containing  its  own  separate  color  ; 
and  thus  it  will  be  evident  that  the  pattern  may  be  completed 
by  three  impressions  of  the  same  block,  and  by  one  printer 


502 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


advancing  one-third  the  size  of  the  frame  at  every  impression, 
and  thus  completing  the  pattern  as  shown  at  fig.  9. 

There  is  another  practical  advantage  arising  from  the  use 
of  these  open  frames  and  patterns  in  block-printing,  which 
will  also  be  readily  observed  by  persons  conversant  with  the 
art.  The  openings  or  interstices,  i,  i,  z,  i,  see  fig.  3,  between 
the  frame  of  the  block,  and  the  patterns  or  devices  upon  the 
slips,  b,  b,  will  prevent  any  air  from  being  confined  between 
the  face  of  the  block  and  the  sieve  cloth,  when  the  block  is 
dipped  to  receive  the  color,  and  thereby  the  block  will  "  fur- 
nish" with  color,  without  being  interrupted  by  confined  air- 
bubbles,  which  frequently  occur,  and  prevent  the  color  from 
being  evenly  received  by  the  block. 

III.  The  third  series  of  improvements*  in  block-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  James  Hudson,  of  Gale,  near 
Rochdale,  and  consist  in  a  travelling  endless  web,  moved  by 
power,  which,  by  passing  progressively  from  the  color  vat 
over  the  diaphragm,  brings  forward  continuously  a  uniform 
supply  of  the  colored  paste  for  the  workman's  block.  In  the 
process  of  block-printing,  as  commonly  practised,  a  circular 
sieve  with  a  wooden  hoop  is  used,  which  sieve  rests  upon  an 
oil  cloth  extended  over,  and  nailed  to,  a  wooden  hoop,  and 
which  floats  in  a  cistern  or  tub,  containing  a  viscid  fluid  com- 
position of  considerable  tenacity,  known  among  calico-print- 
ers by  the  name  of  "  swimming."  By  the  resistance  of  the 
swimming  against  the  oil  cloth  the  latter  is  pressed  against 
the  sieve  bottom  which  rests  upon  it,  so  that  the  latter  forms 
an  elastic  table  or  bed  over  which  the  fluid  coloring  matter  or 
mordant  employed  is  spread  and  diffused,  by  means  of  a  brush 
applied  by  the  teer  boy,  whose  duty  it  is,  from  time  to  time, 
to  supply  the  sieve  with  the  coloring  matter  or  mordant,  and 
to  brush  over  and  diffuse  the  same  so  that  a  renewed  and 
uniform  surface  of  such  coloring  matter  or  mordant  may  be 
presented  to  the  face  of  the  block  when  applied  to  the  sieve,  so 
as  to  insure  perfect  impressions  of  the  fabric  in  process  of 
printing.    The  object  of  this  invention  is  to  effect  the  pur- 


*  Patented  in  December,  1834. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


503 


pose,  before  mentioned,  of  presenting  a  renewed  and  uniform 
surface  of  coloring  material  or  mordant  to  which  the  block 
may  be  from  time  to  time  applied,  without  the  intervention 
of  the  teer  boy  or  assistant,  and  in  a  more  certain  and 
uniform  manner  than  is  effected  by  the  method  commonly 
practised.  The  manner  in  which  the  said  machinery  and 
apparatus  are  to  be  constructed  and  used  are  set  forth  and 
ascertained  in  the  description  following,  illustrated  by,  and 
having  reference  to,  the  figures  or  drawings  contained  in  the 
Plate. 

Fig.  1,  Plate  VI.,  represents  a  side  elevation  of  the  ma- 
chinery and  apparatus. 

Fig.  2,  represents  a  plan  or  bird's  eye  view. 

Fig.  3,  represents  a  front  elevation. 

Fig.  4,  represents  a  longitudinal  section. 

Figs.  5  and  6,  represent  the  separate  parts  constituting  the 
two  ends  of  the  color  box  hereinafter  described. 

Fig.  7,  represents  a  plan  of  the  doctor  or  straight  edge, 
hereinafter  described.* 

A,  is  a  cast-iron  box  or  cistern  open  at  the  top,  and,  when 
in  use,  is  covered  with  an  oil-cloth  or  varnished  cloth  of  the 
kind  used  by  calico  printers  in  the  cases  now  commonly  em- 
ployed for  teering  or  diffusing  the  coloring  material  or  mor- 
dant. The  upper  edges  of  this  box,  on  each  side,  have  a  pro- 
jecting flanch,  «,  over  which  the  edges  of  the  oil-cloth  cover- 
ing are  lapped  and  nailed  down  tight  to  a  narrow  wooden 
moulding,  t,  screwed  under  the  flanches  by  screws  passed 
from  the  inside  of  the  box  through  the  small  holes  at  b,  in 
the  sides  of  the  box  as  seen  at  figs.  1  and  4.  The  upper  sur- 
face of  the  oil-cloth  covering  is  represented  at  W,  in  fig.  2 ; 
and  the  situation  of  the  wooden  moulding  under  the  returned 
edge  or  flange  of  the  cistern  is  seen  in  figs.  1,  3,  and  4.  In 
the  side  of  the  box,  as  seen  in  fig.  1,  is  an  opening  designated 
by  the  dotted  fines,  C,  communicating  with  an  upright  iron 


*  Dr.  Ure,  at  page  249  of  his  "  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manufactures,  and  Mines," 
gives  a  defective  description  of  this  beautiful  machine.  Those  of  our  friends 
who  have  copies  of  the  "  Dictionary,"  will  please  refer. 


504 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


pipe,  d,  open  at  the  top  and  attached  to,  and  proceeding  from, 
the  outer  side  of  the  box  in  an  upward  curve,  and  then  as- 
suming a  perpendicular  direction.  This  upright  pipe  is  cast 
distinct  from  the  box,  A,  and  is  fastened  thereto  with  screws 
and  nuts,  for  which  purpose  the  end  of  the  chimney  adjoining 
the  box  is  cast  with  a  flanch  to  admit  of  being  tapped  to  re- 
ceive the  screws.  This  flanch  and  the  screw  heads  are  seen 
in  figs.  1  and  2 ;  between  the  flanch  and  the  sides  of  the  box 
is  introduced  a  piece  of  mill-board  or  other  packing  to  pack 
the  whole  tight  and  close,  e,  are  two  arms  or  stays,  which 
are  called  the  back  pulley  stays,  proceeding  from  the  lower 
part  of  the  box,  A,  at  one  end  of  it ;  each  of  which  arms  has 
an  upright  projection,/,  at  the  end  farthest  from  the  box,  in 
which  is  a  hole  to  admit  a  long  screw,  each  end  of  which 
is  turned  plain  and  smooth  for  about  one-third  of  an  inch, 
and  the  intermediate  length  is  cut  in  a  screw  or  spiral.  The 
plain  end  of  each  of  the  screw  pieces,  g*,  nearest  the  box, 
works  in  a  socket  sunk  in  the  back  of  the  box  which  is  there 
thickened  to  admit  of  such  socket.  Each  of  the  back  pulley 
stays,  e,  carries  a  loose  brass  nut,  A,  tapped  to  receive  and  fit 
on  the  screws,  g,  each  nut  having  on  its  upper  side  a  small 
hole  or  gland  to  admit  oil  for  lubricating.  The  nuts,  h,  serve 
as  steps  or  bearings  to  receive  the  ends  of  the  axle  of  a  roller, 
hereinafter  more  particularly  mentioned.  The  near  end  of 
the  cast-iron  box  has  two  descending  arms,  i\  and  i2,  see  figs. 
3  and  4,  which  support  the  color  or  mordant  box,  B,  herein- 
after described,  and  has  also  two  small  projections,  x,  one  of 
which  has  a  centre  and  the  other  a  step  or  slot  to  receive  the 
ends  of  the  axle  of  the  roller,  2.  k,  is  a  bracket  projecting 
from  the  near  end  of  the  side  of  the  box,  A.  Two  arms,  b\ 
62,  are  screwed  to,  and  descend  obliquely  from,  the  bracket,  k, 
to  carry  at  their  lowest  extremities  the  two  bearings  for  the 
axle,  m,  of  the  grooved  pulley,  m2.  The  axle,  m,  projects 
beyond  the  arm,  62,  towards  the  color  box,  B,  hereinafter  de- 
scribed ;  and  on  this  projecting  pad  is  a  longitudinal  rib  or 
key  fitting  into  a  key  bed,  in  the  central  hole  of  the  sliding 
cross  or  clutch,  o\  the  arms  of  which,  when  it  is  pushed  home 
towards  the  color  box,  catch  the  projecting  legs  of  the  clutch, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES.  505 

o2,  which  is  fixed  on  the  adjoining  end  of  the  axle  of  the 
roller,  L  In  figs.  2  and  3,  B,  is  a  color  box,  the  front,  bot- 
tom and  back  of  which  is  usually  made  of  an  entire  piece  of 
sheet  copper  or  other  suitable  metal,  or  of  wood,  bent  in  the 
form  of  a  trough  having  a  vent  pipe  or  plug  hole,  at  the 
bottom  to  allow  the  drawing  off  of  the  coloring  fluid  when 
necessary. 

The  material  of  which  the  color  or  mordant  box  must  be 
composed,  will  vary  with  the  coloring  matter  or  mordant  to 
be  used,  but  as  the  action  of  acids  is  familiar  to  calico-prin- 
ters, every  competent  workman  will  be  quite  aware  of  the  ef- 
fects which  the  use  of  different  metals  in  the  structure  of  the 
color  box  will  produce  on  the  colors  he  employs.  The  ends 
of  the  color  box  may  be  most  conveniently  made  in  the  forms 
represented  in  figs.  5  and  6  ;  fig.  5,  representing  the  parts  of 
the  end  nearest  the  driving  pulley  m* ;  and  fig.  6,  the  parts 
of  the  other  end  ;  each  end  is  made  in  two  pieces,  an  upper 
and  a  lower,  q1  and  ;  figs.  5  and  6,  are  the  lower  pieces, 
and  r1  and  r2,  the  upper  pieces  of  the  respective  ends ;  a  por- 
tion of  the  lower  piece,  ql,  is  recessed  inwardly,  and  a  portion 
of  q2,  is  recessed  outwardly  to  receive  the  ends  of  the  descend- 
ing arms,  il  and  t2,  from  the  near  end  of  the  box  or  cistern, 
A.  The  lower  piece  of  each  end  is  made  with  an  outward 
flanch  all  round,  and  to  these  flanches  the  corresponding  arms 
of  the  trough  are  rivetted.  The  piece,  ql,  has  a  hole,  5,  by 
which  it  is  suspended  on  a  pin  projecting  from  the  inner  side 
of  the  descending  arm,  i1,  nearest  the  driving  pulley,  m2,  and 
the  lower  piece,  q2,  is  attached  to  the  other  descending  arm, 
i2,  by  a  screw,  n,  which  passes  through  the  hole,  6,  and  screws 
into  the  adjoining  end  of  the  descending  arm,  i2,  which  is 
tapped  to  receive  it  in  order  to  attach  together  the  upper  and 
lower  pieces  of  the  ends  of  the  color  box.  The  flanch  at  the 
upper  edge  of  each  of  the  lower  end  pieces,  ql  and  q2,  is 
spread  out  into  a  semicircular  projection  at  the  nearer  end, 
and  the  flanch  at  the  lower  edge  of  each  of  the  upper  end 
pieces,  r1  and  r2,  are,  in  like  manner,  spread  out  into  a  cor- 
responding projection,  and  each  corresponding  pair  of  these 
projections,  namely,  one  upper  end  and  one  lower,  are  united 

64 


506  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

by  means  of  a  screw,  m3,  which  passing  through  a  hole  in 
the  upper  projection  is  screwed  into  the  lower  projection  which 
is  tapped  to  receive  it.  The  upper  piece,  rl,  is  made  with  a 
notch  or  fork  at  its  back  part  which  clasps  the  descending 
arm,  il ;  this  fork  is  seen  in  the  elevation  at  r3,  fig.  5,  and 
serves  to  keep  in  its  place  the  color  box,  and  its  adjuncts  on 
the  superior  margin  of  each  of  the  upper  pieces.  r\  r2,  are 
two  bosses  or  projecting  pieces,  9  and  10,  which  carry  the  ex- 
tremities of  a  screw,  11,  having  a  pivot  and  nick  turned  plain 
to  turn  in  holes  in  the  bosses  as  bearings  ;  on  each  screw,  11, 
is  a  nut  or  moveable  piece,  12,  tapped  to  receive  the  screw, 
and  which,  by  turning  the  screw,  11,  by  its  fly  or  thumb-plate, 
may  be  made  to  travel  forward  or  backward  to  the  extent  of 
the  distance  between  the  bosses,  9,  10.  The  upper  end  of 
each  nut  or  shifting  piece,  12,  terminates  in  a  fork  bended 
horizontally  inwards  towards  each  other  so  as  to  form  bearers 
for  the  end  of  the  doctor  or  straight  edge,  s,  best  seen  in  figs. 
3  and  7.  The  back  of  the  doctor  is  flanged  or  turned  up  for 
the  purpose  of  strengthening  it,  except  at  the  two  ends,  which 
are  cut  down  to  admit  of  their  being  received  into  the  forks, 
in  which  they  are  kept  firm  by  pins  passed  through  eyes  in 
the  upper  and  lower  prong  of  each  fork,  and  through  corres- 
ponding holes  drilled  in  the  ends  of  the  doctor.  1,  2,  3,  best 
seen  in  fig.  4,  are  a  series  of  wooden  rollers,  of  which.  1,  is 
called  the  lower  front  roller  ;  2,  the  upper  front  roller ;  and, 
3,  the  back  roller :  4,  is  also  a  wooden  roller,  which  may  be 
covered  with  flannel  or  similar  material,  or  not  covered,  ac- 
cording to  the  degree  of  tenacity  of  the  coloring  matter  or 
mordant  employed  to  take  up  the  coloring  material  or  mordant 
in  the  box,  and  which  is,  therefore,  called  the  furnishing- 
roller  ;  each  of  the  four  rollers  runs  on  axles  supported  by  the 
bearings  about  to  be  described.  The  axles  of  the  furnishing- 
roller,  4,  rest  in  steps  which  move  freely  in  perpendicular 
grooves  or  guides  formed  in  the  inside  of  the  ends  of  the 
color  box,  as  seen  by  dotted  lines  in  q\  and  q2,  figs.  5  and  6. 
These  steps  are  adjusted  or  moved  in  a  perpendicular  direc- 
tion by  means  of  the  screws,  z,  which  pass  through  the  under 
side  of  the  color  box  for  that  purpose,  so  that  the  amount  of 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


507 


pressure  between  the  rollers,  1  and  4,  can  be  regulated  with 
the  greatest  exactness.  The  axles  of  the  lower  front  roller, 
1,  rest  on  the  upper  edges  of  the  lower  pieces,  ql,  and  q2,  of 
the  ends  of  the  color  box,  and  are  retained  in  their  places  by 
caps  or  openings  cast  in  the  corresponding  upper  pieces,  rl 
and  r2.  The  axles  of  the  upper  front  roller,  2,  run  in  the 
centre  of  the  slot  or  step  formed  in  the  projections,  ar,  of  the 
box,  A,  as  before  described,  and  the  axles  of  the  back  roller, 
3,  rest  in  the  steps,  A,  also  before  described. 

On  the  end  of  the  roller,  1,  farthest  from  the  driving-pulley, 
m2,  is  fixed  the  small  spur-wheel,  13,  which  gears  with  an- 
other spur-wheel  fixed  immediately  beneath  it,  on  the  corres- 
ponding end  of  the  furnishing  roller,  4 ;  the  spur-wheels  be- 
ing of  such  relative  size  that  the  face  of  the  roller,  4,  may 
work  with  a  slight  rubbing  action  against  the  endless  web, 
hereinafter  described.  The  rollers,  1,  2,  and  3,  carry  an  end- 
less web,  Z,  made  of  the  cloth  or  fabric  commonly  used 
among  block-printers  for  forming  the  bottom  of  the  common 
sieve,  hereinbefore  mentioned,  or  of  any  other  fabric  for  taking 
up  the  coloring  matter  or  mordant,  and  which  web,  when  the 
roller  1,  is  made  to  revolve,  is  carried  over  and  in  contact 
with  the  case  or  covering,  W,  of  the  box,  A.  The  web,  in  its 
revolution,  passes  between  two  small  brackets,  14,  fitted  to 
and  sliding  on  the  doctor,  s,  and  best  seen  in  fig.  7,  at  a  dis- 
tance from  each  other  equal  to  the  width  of  the  web,  and  con- 
nected by  a  wire,  15,  in  the  space  between  which  and  the 
doctor  the  web  passes  to  put  the  machine  in  working  order. 
The  box,  A,  is  fixed  to  a  wooden  frame,  as  shown  in  figs.  1, 
and  3,  the  legs  of  which  are  represented  in  the  figures  as 
broken  ofT,  and  are  of  the  height  most  convenient  to  the  work- 
men. The  box  being  filled  with  the  swimming,  before  men- 
tioned, the  covering  is  stretched  over  the  top  and  projecting 
edges  or  flanges  of  the  box,  A,  and  nailed  down  tightly  to  the 
wooden  moulding  so  as  effectually  to  prevent  the  escape  of 
the  swimming ;  a  further  quantity  of  swimming  is  then 
poured  into  the  pipe,  e£,  so  as  to  raise  the  level  of  the  swim- 
ming in  it  a  little  above  the  edges  of  the  box,  and  thereby 
to  produce  an  upward  pressure  of  the  liquid  in  the  box, 


508 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


against  the  oil-cloth  or  covering,  the  pressure  being  propor- 
tionable to  the  height  of  the  liquor  in  the  upright  pipe.  By 
this  means  the  covering  forms  a  firm  elastic  table  ;  the 
endless  sieve  or  web,  Z,  is  then  extended  over  the  elastic 
table  thus  formed  over  the  rollers,  2,  and  3,  and  under  the 
roller,  1,  as  best  shown  in  fig.  4,  the  tension  of  the  endless 
web  may  be  regulated  by  varying  the  position  of  the  back 
roller,  3,  which,  by  means  of  the  adjusting  screws,  g,  acting 
on  the  moveable  steps,  h,  may  be  made  to  approach  to,  or  re- 
cede from,  the  back  of  the  box,  as  occasion  may  require.  In 
like  manner  the  degree  of  force  with  which  the  doctor  or 
straight  edge,  s,  shall  bear  on  the  endless  web  may  be  regu- 
lated by  means  of  the  adjusting  screws,  11.  The  machine 
being  thus  adjusted,  the  vent  hole,  y,  of  the  color  box  is 
closed  up,  and  the  fluid  coloring  material  or  mordant  intended 
to  be  used  is  poured  into  the  color  box,  B,  to  such  a  height 
that  a  sufficient  quantity  may  be  taken  up  by  the  roller,  4,  in 
its  revolutions,  the  grooved  pulley,  ra2,  being  turned  by  a  strap 
or  cord  from  a  revolving  shaft  worked  by  steam  or  other  pow- 
er, or  by  hand,  the  clutch  sliding  coupling,  o1,  is  pushed  to  the 
end  of  the  pulley  axle,  m,  so  as  to  gear  with  the  clutch,  o2,  as 
represented  in  fig.  2 ;  the  roller,  1,  on  the  axle  of  which  the 
clutch  is  fixed,  is  thus  caused  to  revolve  and  by  means  of  the 
spur  wheel,  13,  and  the  one  gearing  with  it,  as  before  de- 
scribed, drives  the  furnishing  roller,  which,  as  it  revolves  takes 
up  the  coloring  fluid  or  mordant  from  the  color  box  and  im- 
parts it  to  the  endless  sieve  or  web,  Z,  in  its  passage  un- 
der the  roller,  1.  As  the  endless  web  traverses  from  the 
roller,  1,  to  the  roller,  2,  it  bears  against  the  doctor,  s,  by 
which  the  superfluous  color  is  scraped  off  and  falls  into  the 
color  box,  to  facilitate  which  the  axes  of  the  rollers,  1,  2,  are 
not  placed  in  the  same  perpendicular,  but  in  an  oblique  line, 
the  roller,  2,  being  a  little  more  forward  than  the  roller,  1 ; 
the  small  brackets,  14,  on  the  doctor  further  scrape  off  the 
superfluous  color  from  the  edges  of  the  endless  web.  As  the 
endless  web  progresses  over  the  elastic  table  formed  by  the 
extended  covering,  the  printer  applies  his  block  to  it  as  to  the 
common  sieve,  the  raised  pattern  on  the  face  of  the  block 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


509 


thereby  receiving  the  color  or  mordant  which  is  to  be  trans- 
ferred to  the  fabric  in  the  process  of  being  printed. 

IV.  The  fourth  series  of  improvements*  in  block-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  Robert  Hampson,  of  Manchester. 
In  Plate  VII.,  fig.  1,  is  a  side  elevation  of  a  machine  for 
block-printing.  A,  is  a  roller  or  wooden  cylinder,  on  which 
the  fabric  to  be  printed,  is  wound ;  and  S,  a  similar  roller, 
provided  with  a  length  of  calico  or  other  cloth,  to  pass  under 
the  fabric,  and  protect  the  blanket  during  the  printing  pro- 
cess, a,  a,  represent  carrier  rollers,  under  the  one  and  over 
the  other  of  which  the  fabric  and  under-cloth  are  carried  in 
their  passage  towards  the  printing  table  B,  over  which  they 
pass. 

The  rollers,  A,  and  S,  are  both  prevented  from  revolving 
freely,  by  means  of  a  break  or  check  line,  and  the  counter- 
weights, 6,  6,  so  that  the  fabric  and  under-cloth  are  held  in  a 
state  of  moderate  tension  as  they  are  drawn  forward  over  the 
printing  table,  B.  The  position  at  which  the  impression  is 
given  to  the  fabric,  is  immediately  over  the  letter,  B ;  whence 
the  fabric  passes  forward  over  the  roller,  C,  and  there  sepa- 
rates from  the  calico  or  under-cloth,  which  passes  between 
the  roller,  C,  and  the  pressing  roller,  c,  which  is  held  in  close 
contact  with  the  under  surface  of  the  roller,  C,  by  means  of 
the  small  levers  and  counter-weights,  D,  D. 

On  the  axis  of  the  roller,  C,  is  placed  the  spur-wheel,  E, 
which  receives  motion  from  the  pinion,  e,  when  made  to  re- 
volve, by  means  of  the  handle  or  winch,  F.  This  handle 
or  winch  is  arranged  to  make  one  revolution  for  every  in- 
tended progressive  movement  of  the  fabric,  having  reference 
to  the  depth  of  the  pattern  or  portion  of  the  pattern  intended 
to  be  impressed  thereon,  and  is  held  stationary,  during  the 
printing  operation,  by  a  small  spring  catch,/. 

The  amount  of  revolution  imparted  to  the  wheel,  E, 
necessarily  depends  on  the  relative  size  of  the  pinion,  e7 
which  can  be  changed  when  required,  so  that  as  soon  as  one 
impression  has  been  received  on  the  fabric,  at  the  point,  B,  a 


*  Patented  in  June,  1840. 


510 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


uniform  amount,  in  length,  of  the  fabric,  corresponding  with 
the  amount  printed,  is  drawn  forward  by  the  revolution  of 
the  cylinder,  C,  and  a  fresh  portion  of  the  fabric  presented  to 
the  printing  operation. 

After  the  fabric  has  received  the  impression  from  the  block, 
and  passed  forward  over  the  roller,  C,  it  is  carried  over  a 
heated  plate,  d,  d,  for  the  purpose  of  drying  it,  and  thence 
forward  under  the  carrier  rollers,  gl,  g\  then  over  the  press- 
ing roller,  c,  and  under  or  over  such  carrier  rollers  as  may  be 
convenient,  until  it  is  deposited,  printed,  and  in  a  dry  state, 
on  the  roller,  R. 

The  heated  surface,  d,  d,  for  the  purpose  of  drying  the 
printed  fabric,  is  produced  by  a  constant  flow  of  hot  water  or 
steam  within  a  chamber,  of  which  d,  d,  forms  one  side ;  but 
the  mode  of  heating  may  be  varied,  according  to  the  nature 
of  the  fabric  to  be  printed. 

The  block,  G,  from  which  the  impression  is  received  on 
the  fabric,  is  suspended  immediately  over  and  parallel  to 
the  table,  B,  where  it  is  attached  to  the  cross-frame,  g,  g. 
This  frame  is  guided  and  kept  horizontal  in  its  ascent  and 
descent  within  the  strong  upright  frame  of  the  machine,  X, 
X,  by  means  of  the  centre  rod,  H,  and  is  suspended  in  its 
present  position  by  means  of  the  band,  %  i,  and  counter- 
weight, I ;  so  that,  by  raising  the  counter-weight,  I,  the  cross- 
frame  and  block  descend  by  their  own  gravity,  and  the  block 
imparts  the  pattern  to  the  fabric  on  the  table  below,  return- 
ing to  the  position  represented,  as  soon  as  the  weight,  I,  is 
drawn  down  by  the  operator. 

The  apparatus  for  distributing  the  color  to  the  block,  G,  is 
represented  at  K,  and  moves  on  the  railway,  L,  L.  In  the 
drawing  it  is  shown  immediately  under  the  block,  G,  pre- 
paratory to  the  block  being  depressed  to  receive  the  color, 
and  in  dotted  lines,  in  the  position  to  which  it  would  be  re- 
moved before  the  block  again  descended  to  impart  the  pattern 
to  the  fabric  below. 

The  construction  of  this  part  of  the  invention  will  be  seen 
in  the  detached  figures,  where  figs.  2  and  3,  represent  plans, 
and  figs.  4  and  5,  transverse  sections  of  a  coloring  apparatus, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


511 


for  distributing  six  colors  to  the  block  at  one  operation.  In 
these  figures,  m,  m,  m,  represent  eight  compartments  or 
small  cisterns,  in  which  the  liquid  colors  are  contained,  ready 
for  distribution  on  the  surface  of  their  respective  sieves  or 
elastic  surfaces,  M,  M,  M. 

The  six  parallel  boxes  or  cisterns,  under  the  sieves,  M, 
M,  M,  are  supplied,  at  their  respective  openings,  n,  n,  n, 
with  the  requisite  amount  of  liquid  to  keep  them  elastic,  and 
are  supported  on  two  straight  edges,  O,  O.  The  first  sieve- 
box  is  stationary,  but  the  other  five  can  be  separated  by 
means  of  the  bent  irons,  Q,,  Q,,  which  are  attached  to  the  last 
sieve,  and  the  amount  of  separation  or  distance  from  each 
other,  at  which  they  are  held,  is  determined  by  means  of  a 
strap  of  leather,  p,  p,  (see  figs.  4  and  5,)  attached  to  the 
under  side  of  all  the  sieve  boxes  or  cisterns. 

Fig.  6,  is  a  plan,  and  fig.  7,  an  elevation  of  a  feeder  or  im- 
plement for  distributing  the  color  from  the  color  cisterns,  wi, 
m,  m,  into  the  sieves,  M,  M,  M.  This  feeder  consists  of  a 
series  of  wooden  pegs,  fixed  in  and  proceeding  from  the  under 
surface  of  a  slab  of  wood,  and  so  placed  as  to  correspond  with 
the  respective  color  cisterns,  so  that,  by  lifting  the  feeder  out 
of  the  color  cisterns,  and  placing  it  on  the  sieves,  when  in  the 
position  represented  at  fig.  2,  a  regular  amount  of  color  is  car- 
ried to  each,  and  the  dipper,  being  returned  to  the  color  ves- 
sels, remains  ready  for  the  next  operation. 

Fig.  8,  represents  a  teering  brush  or  rubber,  y,  with  two 
handles,  which  is  to  be  placed  in  a  trough,  made  for  its  recep- 
tion, as  seen  at  fig.  3,  when  not  in  use  ;  and  is  shown  in  ele- 
vation, as  when  in  use  at  fig.  4.  This  brush  or  rubber  is  for 
teering  or  spreading  the  color  uniformly  on  the  surface  of  the 
respective  sieves,  and  is  divided  into  spaces  to  correspond  with 
the  sieves  when  separated,  as  in  fig.  2.  The  colors  having 
been  distributed,  by  means  of  the  dipper,  fig.  7,  and  spread 
or  teered  by  the  brush,  the  coloring  apparatus  is  passed  along 
the  railway,  L,  L,  under  the  block,  G,  where  the  projections, 
Q,,  Q,,  coming  in  contact  with  the  upright  framing  of  the  ma- 
chine, the  several  sieves,  M,  M,  M,  are  pushed  together  or  closed, 
as  seen  at  fig.  3,  and  are  then  in  a  position  to  correspond  with 


512 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  several  portions  of  the  pattern  on  the  block,  G,  which  are 
to  receive  the  several  colors.  In  this  apparatus,  the  color  be- 
ing distributed  in  straight  lines,  the  pattern  on  the  block,  G, 
must  necessarily  partake  of  the  same  character  ;  but  by  vari- 
ations in  the  form  of  sieves,  patterns  of  a  different  character 
may  be  produced. 

Fig.  10,  is  a  modification  of  the  coloring  apparatus,  in 
which,  by  the  sieves  being  made  with  projections  or  indenta- 
tions, x,  filling  into  each  other,  alternate  colors  would  be  im- 
parted to  the  block  when  the  sieves  were  closed,  and  the  block 
brought  into  contact  therewith ;  whereas,  in  the  former  con- 
struction, it  would  be  the  same  color  throughout.  But  this 
and  other  modifications  of  the  coloring  apparatus,  according 
to  the  nature  of  the  pattern  to  be  produced,  will  be  obvious  to 
any  party  conversant  with  printing  operations, — a  principal 
advantage  in  the  method  described,  of  distributing  and  teer- 
ing  the  color,  depending  on  the  moveable  arrangement  of  the 
sieves,  which  allow  of  the  near  approximation  of  different 
colors  in  the  pattern,  without  endangering  their  admixture 
during  the  process  of  distribution  and  teering. 

Fig.  9,  is  an  elevation  of  a  brush  for  cleaning  the  block,  G, 
when  required,  which,  by  moving  accurately  on  the  edge  of 
the  coloring  apparatus,  comes  in  contact  with  every  part  of 
the  block  on  which  any  part  of  the  pattern  is  raised,  the 
block  being  sufficiently  lowered  for  this  purpose  when  re- 
quired. 

The  following  figures  represent  a  modification  of  the  color- 
box,  adapted  to  the  employment  of  a  printing  block,  of  the 
ordinary  size,  to  be  used  by  hand,  either  before  or  after  dye- 
ing, or  other  process,  by  which  the  texture  of  the  fabric  to  be 
printed  has  been  stretched,  contracted,  or  otherwise  varied,  in 
the  same  manner  as  block  printing  is  ordinarily  performed, 
and  when  the  object  could  not  be  properly  or  conveniently  ef- 
fected by  a  block,  covering  the  whole  width  of  the  fabric,  as 
already  described. 

Fig.  11,  is  a  plan  of  the  color  box  ;  fig.  12,  is  a  transverse 
section  of  the  same,  taken  at  the  line,  T,  T,  of  fig.  11  ;  and  fig. 
13,  a  transverse  section,  taken  at  the  line,  w,  w,  of  the  same  fig. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


513 


The  position  of  the  sieves,  when  closed  and  ready  to  re- 
ceive the  block,  is  shown  at  fig.  11 ;  but  when  not  in  use, 
they  are  placed  as  shown,  in  section,  at  fig.  12. 

It  will  be  observed,  that  in  the  coloring  apparatus,  before 
explained,  the  teering  or  spreading  of  the  color  was  described 
as  performed  lengthwise,  from  end  to  end  of  the  sieves.  In 
the  present  modification  it  is  performed  across  or  at  a  right 
angle  to  the  longest  side  of  the  sieves,  which  are  divided  into 
compartments  by  small  bands  or  raised  divisions,  placed  across 
the  sieves,  to  prevent  the  intermixture  of  different  colors 
placed  on  the  same  sieves. 

The  various  colors  are  placed  in  compartments,  marked 
m,  m,  m,  and  each  is  subdivided  into  a  variety  of  small  cells, 
to  contain  colors  and  shades  of  colors.  Thus,  at  one  impres- 
sion of  the  block,  six  or  more  separate  colors  are  placed  on 
the  fabric,  and  the  rainbowed  effect  produced  and  intermixed 
to  a  greater  extent  than  has  heretofore  been  effected.* 

V.  The  fifth  series  of  improvements!  in  block-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  James  Capple  Miller,  of  Man- 
chester, and  consist  in  a  novel  arrangement  and  construction 
of  mechanism,  whereby  the  pattern  or  design  may  be  printed 
upon  the  goods  or  fabrics,  by  the  agency  of  machinery,  worked 
by  steam  or  other  adequate  power. 

The  peculiar  department  of  printing  calicos,  muslins,  &c.; 
to  which  these  improvements  are  more  particularly  applicable, 
is  that  process  usually  denominated  block-printing,  which  is 
ordinarily  performed  by  manual  labor  ;  the  design  or  pattern 
to  be  printed,  being  first  traced  on  the  surface  of  the  blocks, 
and  small  portions  of  a  single  color  impressed  upon  the  cloth, 
by  the  hands  of  the  workman,  the  intervening  and  finishing 
colors  being  separately  printed  at  successive  intervals. 

The  advantages  attainable  by  this  invention  are,  firstly, 


*  Mr.  Parnell,  at  page  137  (American  edition)  of  his  "  Applied  Chemistry,"  sep- 
resents  this  valuable  machine  by  a  portion  of  the  framing  only ;  and  which,  he 
calls  "  a  sketch  of  the  ■principal  parts  of  this  very  ingenious  press-printing  ma- 
chine." It  is,  we  believe,  quite  common  for  writers  of  Mr.  Parnell's  practical  ex- 
perience in  mechanics,  to  consider  the  framing  the  principal  part  of  the  machine, 

t  Patented  in  August.  1839. 

65 


514 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  capability  of  printing  two,  three,  four,  or  more  colors,  at 
one  operation  ;  and  secondly,  completing  the  printed  pattern 
upon  the  whole  width  of  the  piece  of  goods,  or  upon  two  or 
more  pieces,  side  by  side,  in  the  same  machine  ;  and  by  hav- 
ing another  table,  and  set  of  impression  boxes  and  color  boxes, 
the  same  movements  may  be  applied,  so  that  the  carriage,  in 
retiring,  may  print  two  or  more  pieces,  and  in  advancing, 
print  also  two  more. 

In  Plate  VIII.,  are  several  views  of  the  improved  machine, 
calculated  to  print  two  pieces,  or  two  different  patterns,  on 
the  same  block,  of  calico,  muslin,  or  other  fabric,  side  by  side, 
(or  four  pieces,  the  carriage  printing  both  ways,)  the  intended 
pattern,  or  device,  to  be  printed,  consisting  of  four  colors,  to 
be  printed  from  blocks. 

Fig.  1,  represents  a  side  elevation,  fig.  2,  a  front  view,  and 
fig.  3,  a  transverse  section,  taken  through  about  the  middle 
of  the  machine. 

The  side  or  main  framing  of  the  printing  machine,  is  shown 
at  a,  a,  supporting  the  color  boxes,  b,  b,  b,  with  their  respec- 
tive "  doctors the  furnishing  tables  or  beds,  c,  c,  c,  (which 
are  a  substitute  for  the  sieve  in  ordinary  block-printing  ;)  the 
printing  table,  d)  d  ;  and'  the  feeding,  drying,  and  delivering 
rollers,/,/,^,  g,  h,  h. 

The  machine  is  also  provided  with  a  carriage,  i,  i,  for  the 
printing  blocks,  j,  j,  j,  j.  This  carriage,  i,  %  travels  in  and 
out,  at  suitable  intervals,  upon  rails,  k,  k,  attached  to  the 
main  framing, 

The  operation  of  the  machine  is  effected,  by  passing  a 
driving-strap,  I,  connected,  by  shafting,  to  the  steam-engine, 
or  any  other  adequate  power,  round  the  driving-pulley,  m, 
fixed  at  the  extremity  of  the  main  driving-shaft,  n,  n.  At 
the  other  end  of  the  shaft,  n,  is  keyed  the  bevil-pinion,  o, 
gearing,  at  suitable  intervals,  (hereafter  explained,)  with  the 
bevil-wheel,  p,  which  is  mounted  upon  one  end  of  the  cross- 
shaft,  q  ;  at  about  the  middle  of  which,  the  mitre-wheels,  r,  r, 
driving  the  upright  shaft,  s,  s,  and  mitre-wheels,  t,  t,  above, 
actuate,  by  means  of  the  spur-pinions,  u,  u,  the  feeding-roll- 
ers, /,  /,  and  thus  draw  the  pieces  of  goods  into  the  machine. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


515 


Simultaneously  with  the  progress  of  the  cloth,  the  mitre- 
wheels,  v,  v,  at  the  other  end  of  the  cross-shaft,  q,  drive  the 
furnishing-rollers,  w,  w,  w,  by  means  of  the  spur-gearing, 
x,  x,  x.  The  furnishing-rollers,  revolving  in  their  respective 
color-boxes,  spread  or  supply  the  colors  upon  the  travelling 
endless  blankets,  y,  which  pass  around  the  top  roller, 
and  the  furnishing-tables  or  beds,  c,  c,  c,  in  order  to  supply 
the  colors  to  the  surfaces  of  the  printing  blocks,  J,  j,j. 

It  may  be  here  remarked,  that  either  the  beds,  c,  or  the 
backs  of  the  printing  blocks,  may  be  made  slightly  elastic,  to 
insure  the  perfect  taking-up  of  the  color  by  the  blocks. 

Supposing  now  the  carriage,  i,  i,  to  be  run  out  upon  its 
railways,  at  the  farthest  point  from  the  beds,  c,  c,  it  is  drawn 
inwards  towards  the  furnishing-beds,  c,  c,  by  means  of  the 
spur-wheel,  z,  upon  the  driving-shaft,  n,  taking  into  a  small 
pinion,  1,  (shewn  by  dots  in  fig.  1,)  upon  the  shaft,  2.  On  the 
end  of  this  shaft  is  also  keyed  the  mangle-pinion,  3,  gearing 
in  the  mangle-wheel,  4,  which  is  keyed  upon  the  end  of  the 
shaft,  5.  This  shaft  drives  the  spur-wheel,  6,  in  gear  with 
the  pinion,  7,  fast  upon  the  shaft,  8, — see  fig.  3. 

Upon  either  end  of  the  shaft,  5,  is  a  rack-pinion,  9,  taking 
into  the  horizontal  rack,  10,  fast  on  the  carriage-frame,  i,  i, 
and  thus  the  blocks,  j,  j,  j,  are  presented  to  the  furnishing- 
blankets,  y,  y,  y,  and  take  a  supply  of  color  ready  for  print- 
ing. The  travelling  carriage  and  blocks  now  retire,  by 
the  agency  of  the  mangle-wheel  and  pinion,  3,  and  4,  the 
pinion  being  fast  upon  the  end  of  the  shaft,  2,  and  the  wheel 
being  fast  upon  the  other  shaft,  5,  in  a  line  with  the  shaft, 
2.  At  this  time,  another  operation  of  the  machine  takes 
place : — 

Upon  the  reverse  end  of  the  shaft.  5,  is  a  pinion,  11,  gear- 
ing with  the  spur-wheel,  12 ;  and  by  means  of  the  spur-gear- 
ing, 6,  and  13,  and  counter-shaft,  14,  the  pinion,  15,  drives  the 
spur-wheel,  16,  which  corresponds  to  the  wheel,  12,  on  the 
other  side  of  the  machine.  To  one  of  the  arms  of  these  spur 
wheels  are  attached,  by  bolts,  two  quadrant  levers,  17,  17 ;  and 
as  these  wheels  revolve,  by  means  of  the  gearing  just  descri- 
bed, the  levers,  17,  17,  draw  down  the  chains,  18,  18,  and  ac- 


516 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


tuate  the  levers,  19,  and  20,  and  thus  elevate  the  whole  series 
of  printing  blocks  in  the  parallel  grooves,  21,  21,  at  the  same 
time  pressing  or  closing  them  into  one  mass  or  block,  by  ex- 
panding the  springs,  22,  22,  and  at  the  next  advance  of  the 
carriage  caused,  at  the  proper  interval,  by  the  agency  of  the 
mangle-wheel,  the  blocks  are  made  to  impress  the  pattern 
upon  the  surface  of  the  goods,  at  once,  in  four  or  more  differ- 
ent colors,  and  in  one,  two,  or  more  widths  of  cloth,  at  one 
operation. 

The  cloth  is  now  drawn  forward,  for  the  space  of  the 
exact  width  of  one  of  the  blocks  or  sketch  of  the  design,  by 
means  of  the  spur-wheels  and  pinions,  23,  23,  and  passed 
around  heated  cylinders,  g,  g,  if  necessary,  and  between  the 
delivering-rollers,  out  of  the  machine.  These  operations  are 
to  be  repeated,  by  the  continuous  rotation  of  the  main 
driving-shaft,  until  the  printing  is  completed,  the  colors 
making  a  single  advance  upon  the  pattern  at  every  presen- 
tation of  the  blocks,  until  the  whole  number  of  blocks  have 
been  presented  to  the  same  space  or  portion  of  the  goods 
successively. 

It  will  be  observed,  that  steam-pipes,  24,  are  to  be  in  con- 
nection with  the  printing  table  and  drying  cylinders,  in  order 
to  supply  a  degree  of  steam-heat  during  the  operation,  which 
may  be  regulated  at  pleasure. 

To  give  suitable  intervals  of  rest  and  motion  to  the  vari- 
ous parts  of  the  driving  gear,  an  ordinary  clutch-box,  25, 
shewn  in  the  drawing,  fig.  1,  and  regulated  by  suitable  stops, 
fixed  to  the  travelling  carriage,  is  used  for  throwing  the 
wheel,  p,  in  and  out  of  gear  with  the  pinion,  o; — this  is  to 
prevent  cloth  or  colors  from  being  dragged  upon  the  blocks. 

VI.  The  sixth  series  of  improvements*  in  block-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  William  Wood,  of  High  Holborn, 
London,  and  apply  principally  to  printing  or  staining  fabrics 
of  the  carpet  kind,  whether  manufactured  by  the  known  pro- 
cesses of  weaving,  or  felting ;  the  object  being  to  communi- 
cate to,  or  deposit  upon,  these  and  the  like  fabrics  such  copi- 


*  Patented  in  December,  1844. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


517 


ous  supplies  or  quantities  of  dyeing  material  as  will  be  suffi- 
cient to  penetrate  deeply  into  the  fabric,  in  order  to  dye  or 
stain  it  through  or  down  to  the  ground-work,  or  nearly  so : 
the  ordinary  modes  of  printing  beings  in  general,  only  ca- 
pable of  coloring  the  surface,  or  a  very  little  way  below  the 
surface.  By  this  improved  means  Mr.  Wood  states,  that 
he  is  enabled  to  print  or  stain  fabrics  which  have  a  raised 
terry,  pile,  or  nap,  such  as  the  fabrics  commonly  called  or 
known  by  the  denominations,  Brussels  carpeting,  or  Wilton 
carpeting  and  the  like  ;  or  thick  fabrics  without  pile,  such  as 
Kidderminster  carpeting and  druggets. 

In  carrying  out  this  object,  a  series  of  cells  or  compartments 
are  provided,  capable  of  holding  a  considerable  quantity  of 
the  dyeing  or  staining  matter.  These  cells  or  compartments 
may  be  arranged,  either  upon  a  level  or  a  curved  surface,  in 
any  figures  or  devices  capable  of  producing  patterns.  The 
cells  are  divided  by  partitions,  in  order  to  limit  and  define, 
laterally,  the  flow  of  the  dyeing  or  staining  materials ;  the 
several  colors  employed  being  placed  in  separate  cells,  accord- 
ing to  the  desired  colors  of  the  pattern  to  be  produced.  These 
arrangements  being  made,  the  face  of  the  fabric  is  brought 
into  contact  with  the  open  parts  of  the  cells,  and  caused  to 
dip  or  penetrate  into  the  cells,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  up 
such  quantities  of  the  coloring  matter  as  will  suffice  to  dye 
or  stain  those  parts  of  the  fabric  operated  upon  to  the  depth 
required.  In  the  first  place  a  flat  plate  or  surface  (to  be  made 
of  metal)  is  provided  ;  upon  this  plate  narrow  strips  or  ribs  of 
metal  are  set  upright  and  arranged  into  figures  or  forms, 
agreeable  to  any  required  pattern.  These  are  soldered  or 
otherwise  attached  to  the  plate,  so  as  to  constitute  separate 
cells  or  receptacles  for  the  coloring  matter,  the  upper  edges  of 
the  strips  being  all  level  or  coincident,  so  as  to  produce  an 
even  surface. 

In  Plate  IX.,  fig.  1,  represents  a  portion  of  a  flat  plate, 
A,  A,  A,  having  the  elevated  ribs,  strips,  or  partitions,  a,  a,  a, 
of  thin  metal  set  up  on  its  surface,  by  which  the  cells,  to  hold 
the  coloring  matter  to  produce  the  pattern,  are  formed.  B,  B,  B, 
is  a  continuous  cell,  formed  to  the  desired  figure,  containing, 


518  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

say  a  pale  green  color,  which  is  supplied  through  a  flat  pipe, 
b,  from  a  pan  or  reservoir  (at  the  side  of  the  table,  but  not 
shown  in  the  drawing) ;  and  when  the  first  cell,  B,  B,  B,  has 
become  filled,  the  color  flows  from  thence  by  other  communi- 
cating pipes,  b*,  6*,  to  corresponding  cells,  B*,  intended  to 
form  similar  parts  of  the  pattern  at  other  parts  of  the  plate. 
The  cell,  C,  C,  C,  is  for  producing  another  shade  and  portion 
of  the  figure  ;  it  contains,  say  a  dark  green  color,  which  is 
conducted  into  it,  in  the  way  before  explained,  by  the  pipe,  e, 
and  passed  thence  by  the  pipes,  c*,  c*,  to  other  parts  of  th^ 
pattern,  C*.  The  cell,  D,  containing,  say  a  brown  color,  is 
supplied,  by  the  like  means,  through  the  pipe  d,  and  that 
color  is  conducted  forward  by  the  pipe,  gT,  to  the  cell,  D*. 
The  ground  color,  say  ruby,  intended  to  cover  the  main  part 
of  the  fabric,  is  made  to  flow  over  the  surface  of  the  plate, 
A,  A,  A,  and  over  the  before-mentioned  feeding-pipes,  as 
shewn  in  the  drawing,  and  is  confined  within  the  marginal 
ribs,  E,  E,  E,  on  the  outside.  This  apparatus  being  so  pre- 
pared, the  face  of  the  fabric  to  be  printed  or  stained  is  brought 
over  and  pressed  upon  the  upper  surface  of  the  partitions, 
a,  a,  a,  on  the  plate,  A,  A,  A,  by  a  flat  platten,  as  in  the  ordi- 
nary way  of  type-printing ;  by  which  means  certain  parts  of 
the  surface  of  the  fabric  are  forced  into  the  cells  or  recesses 
containing  the  coloring  matter,  and  it  thereby  becomes  stained 
or  dyed  with  the  several  colors  in  those  parts  where  the  pat- 
tern is  intended  to  be  produced. 

Fig.  2,  represents  an  elevation,  partly  in  section,  of  a  press, 
well  calculated  for  the  purpose  of  printing  or  staining  fabrics 
of  the  kind  described,  by  means  of  the  improved  apparatus, 
viz.,  a  plate  with  cells,  as  shewn  at  fig.  1.  This  press  the 
patentee  does  not  intend  to  claim  as  new,  but  shows  it  merely 
for  the  purpose  of  explaining  his  mode  of  printing  or  staining 
more  perfectly.  The  cloth  or  fabric,  a,  a,  a,  to  be  printed,  is 
wound  upon  the  roller,  b,  and  thence  conducted  under  the 
roller,  c,  in  a  horizontal  direction,  to  the  rollers,  d,  passing, 
face  downwards,  over  the  dyeing-plate,  A,  A,  before  described, 
which  plate  is  laid  upon  the  table  of  the  press.  The  table, 
whereon  the  plate,  A,  rests,  is  heated  by  a  steam  chest,  B, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


519 


below,  of  which  indeed  the  table  may  be  said  to  form  the 
upper  part.  The  cells  of  the  plate,  A,  A,  being  filled  with 
colors,  by  the  means  described,  or  by  any  other  means  that 
may  be  found  eligible,  that  portion  of  the  distended  fabric, 
a,  a,  which  is  stretched  over  the  face  of  the  plate,  A,  A,  is 
pressed  upon  the  upper  surfaces  of  the  partitions,  and  the 
parts  intended  to  be  printed  are  made  to  dip  into  the  cells  of 
the  plate  by  the  descent  of  the  platten,  C,  and  having  re- 
mained there  a  sufficient  time  to  take  up  the  necessary  quan- 
tity of  color  or  dyeing  material,  the  platten  is  raised  and  the 
cloth  drawn  onward.  In  the  progress  of  the  cloth  toward  the 
taking-up  roller,  e,  it  passes  over  a  hot  plate,  D,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  drying  the  color.  This  plate  may  be  conveniently 
heated  by  the  flame  of  jets  issuing  from  a  gas-pipe  E,  (see 
detached  portion  of  fig.  2,)  though  it  may  be  done  by  other 
means  ;  and,  indeed,  it  may  not  always  be  necessary  to  dry 
the  coloring  matter  upon  the  fabric  in  this  part  of  the  opera- 
tion. 

.  Having  explained  the  construction  of  the  improved  plate, 
with  cells  capable  of  printing  four  colors  at  one  operation,  and 
the  manner  of  applying  it  in  a  press  to  the  purpose  of  print- 
ing or  staining  fabrics,  the  patentee  proceeds  to  show  a  modi- 
fication of  the  apparatus,  by  which  a  great  variety  of  colors 
may  be  printed  upon  the  fabric  at  one  time. 

Fig.  3,  represents  a  series  of  angular  tubes,  a,  b,  &c,  con- 
nected together,  side  by  side,  in  close  contact,  by  solder  or 
other  convenient  means ;  and  fig.  4,  is  a  vertical  section  of 
the  same ;  the  top  surfaces  of  these  conjoined  tubes  form 
together  a  flat  surface,  equivalent  to  the  plate  first  described. 
Upon  this  flat  surface,  strips  or  ribs  of  metal  are  arranged,  as 
before,  in  such  curved  or  other  shapes  as  will  correspond  with 
the  outlines  of  the  pattern  intended  to  be  printed,  in  order  to 
produce  distinct  cells  or  receptacles  for  the  coloring  matter, 
the  strips  or  ribs  forming  the  partitions  between  the  cells. 
The  colors,  or  coloring  matters,  in  a  fluid  state,  are  supplied 
to  this  apparatus  from  pans  or  reservoirs  in  the  sides,  from 
whence  the  several  coloring  fluids  will  pass  into  the  pipes,  a, 
by  &c,  and  rise  through  small  openings  from  the  several  hori- 


520  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

zontal  pipes  into  the  several  recesses  or  compartments.  Care 
must,  however,  be  taken  that  the  coloring  matters  do  not 
overflow  from  one  compartment  into  an  adjoining  compart- 
ment, for,  if  that  occurred,  the  patterns  would  become  ill-de- 
fined and  confused ;  but  this  defect  is  prevented  by  keeping 
the  surface  of  the  coloring  material  in  the  pan  at  the  same 
level  as  in  the  recesses. 

The  surface  of  fig.  3,  it  will  be  seen,  is  divided  into  cells, 
A,  A,  B,  B,  &c,  by  the  ribs  or  strips  of  metal ;  it  will,  there- 
fore, merely  be  necessary  to  say,  that  the  lateral  trough,  A*, 
being  supplied  with  a  red  coloring  matter  or  dye,  that  color 
will  flow  through  the  communicating  pipes,  a,  a,  a,  to  the 
several  cells  or  compartments,  A,  intended  to  contain  the  red 
liquor ;  and  the  cells  B,  B,  will,  in  the  same  manner,  be  sup- 
plied with  a  slate  color  from  the  lateral  trough,  B*,  through 
the  pipes,  b,  b,  b.  All  the  other  compartments  will  be  sup- 
plied by  similar  means  with  their  respective  colors,  from  late- 
ral troughs  through  pipes  ;  each  of  which  pipes  has  a  small 
aperture,  or  apertures,  through  which  the  liquor  flows  up- 
wards to  the  several  compartments. 

Another  mode  of  constructing  cells  to  contain  the  coloring 
liquor  is,  by  forming  pipes  or  hollow  tubes  in  small  pieces, 
about  the  size  and  shape  of  printing  types,  which  may  be 
combined  into  figures  by  the  ordinary  means  of  composition  : 
hollow  types  being  employed  for  forming  the  cells,  and  solid 
types  for  the  blank  parts  of  the  pattern.  These  types  having 
been  composed  into  the  desired  figure,  may  be  placed  over  a 
trough  containing  the  coloring  liquor,  and  the  cloth  being  laid 
thereon,  the  liquor  may  be  forced  up  through  the  hollow  types 
into  the  fabric  by  any  convenient  means.  A  convenient  mode 
of  applying  these  hollow  types  is  shown  at  figs.  5,  and  6. 
Fig.  5,  is  a  horizontal  view  of  a  form  of  these  types  set  up  to 
represent  a  diamond  pattern,  the  types  being  circumscribed, 
and  held  fast  by  a  frame  or  chase,  A,  A,  A.  The  tinted 
squares  represent  the  hollow  types,  through  which  the  color- 
ing matter  is  forced  on  to  the  fabric,  and  the  other  parts  are 
solids  or  blanks.  Fig.  6,  is  a  vertical  section  of  the  same. 
The  frame,  A,  A,  A,  is  a  box,  in  the  mouth  of  which  the 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


521 


types  are  inserted  and  made  fast.  Within  this  box  a  vessel, 
B,  is  attached,  intended  to  contain  the  dyeing  or  staining  ma- 
terial in  a  semi-fluid  state  ;  the  sides  of  the  vessel  being 
formed  of  a  flexible  material.  When  the  form  of  type  has 
been  placed  upon  the  fabric  to  be  printed  in  the  usual  way  of 
applying  blocks  for  printing,  the  moveable  top  of  the  vessel  B, 
is  to  be  slightly  depressed,  for  the  purpose  of  forcing  a  quan- 
tity of  the  dyeing  or  coloring  matter  through  the  hollow  types 
on  to  the  fabric.  Another  mode  of  adapting  these  hollow 
types  to  the  purpose  of  dyeing  or  staining  fabrics  is  shewn  at 
fig.  7.  This  consists  of  a  hollow  cylinder,  A,  perforated  with 
small  holes,  into  which  the  smaller  ends  of  types  are  to  be 
inserted  ;  the  whole  periphery  of  the  cylinder  being  covered 
with  types  set  radially.  Agreeable  to  the  pattern  or  device 
to  be  printed,  the  hollow  types  are  inserted  at  certain  parts  of 
the  cylinder,  and  when  the  interior  of  the  cylinder  is  charged 
with  the  coloring  material,  the  cloth  or  fabric  passing  under 
the  hollow  types  will  be  printed.  The  coloring  matter  being 
of  such  a  consistency  as  will  only  fill  the  hollow  types,  but 
not  flow  freely  through  them,  a  volume  of  steam,  at  a  slight 
degree  of  pressure,  is  conducted  through  the  central  axle,  in 
order  that  it  may  fill  the  chamber  or  passage,  B,  which  ex- 
tends the  whole  length  of  the  cylinder  ;  by  which  pressure  of 
the  steam  the  coloring  matter  will  be  forced  through  those 
hollow  types  which  are  in  contact  with  the  cloth  below,  and 
dye  or  stain  it  accordingly. 

Fig.  8,  represents  in  sectional  elevation,  an  improved  ap- 
paratus, whereby  a  rotary  surface-printing  cylinder  is  applied 
to  the  printing  of  woven  and  other  fabrics ;  a,  a,  is  the  print- 
ing cylinder ;  and  6,  a  roller,  mounted  and  revolving  in  the 
color  trough,  c,  for  taking  up  and  depositing  color  upon  the 
surface  of  the  cylinder.  The  raised  parts  or  surfaces  of  the 
patterns  on  this  cylinder  are  perforated,  as  shewn  at  d,  d,  d, 
and  when  the  pattern  has  been  supplied  with  color  from  the 
roller,  6,  and  by  the  revolution  of  the  cylinder,  a.  is  brought 
under  the  steam  passage  or  chamber,  e,  similar  to  that  above 
described  in  fig.  7,  the  steam  will  enter  the  perforations,  and 
force  out  the  color  on  to  the  fabric,  while,  at  the  same  time, 

66 


522 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  pressure  of  the  cylinder  on  the  fabric  will  cause  the  color 
on  the  solid  parts  of  the  pattern  to  be  taken  off.  The  perfo- 
rations may,  if  thought  desirable,  be  covered  with  woolen 
cloth,  or  other  porous  material. 

VII.  We  shall  close  this  chapter  with  a  description  of  an 
invention*  of  Mr.  John  M'Intosh,  of  Glasgow,  having  for  its 
object,  first,  the  combining  of  the  flock,  of  any  required  color, 
with  a  clear  solution  of  India-rubber  or  of  gutta-percha,  and 
employing  the  mixture  for  printing  on  calico,  paper,  or  other 
fabrics,  in  place  of  the  usual  coloring  materials.  This  mix- 
ture is  printed  on  the  fabrics  in  the  same  manner  as  when 
the  ordinary  colors  are  used,  and  the  flock  is  caused  to  ad- 
here firmly  thereto  by  the  India-rubber  or  gutta-percha. 
The  solution  of  India-rubber  or  gutta-percha  is  preferred  to 
be  made  with  naphtha. 

The  second  part  of  this  invention  consists  in  applying  a 
roller,  coated  with  India-rubber,  to  engraved  rollers  or  plates, 
for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  engraving  clean.  In  printing 
from  engravings  on  rollers  or  plates,  it  has 'hitherto  been  the 
practice  to  wash  out  the  engraving  frequently,  in  order  to 
remove  the  color  that  has  dried  thereon;  instead  of  which, 
the  patentee  causes  a  roller,  coated  with  India-rubber,  to 
press  against  the  engraved  roller,  as  it  revolves,  and  thereby 
remove  the  coloring  matter  that  would  otherwise  adhere 
thereto :  when  applied  to  an  engraved  plate,  the  roller  is 
caused  to  pass  to  and  fro  over  the  plate. 

The  last  part  of  this  invention  consists  in  a  contrivance  for 
spreading  the  color  on  a  suitable  sieve-cloth  or  felt,  from 
which  it  is  to  be  taken  up  by  the  blocks  used  in  block-print- 
ing. In  Plate  VII.,  fig.  1,  is  a  longitudinal  section,  and  fig. 
2,  a  transverse  section  of  the  apparatus,  a,  is  a  bag  contain- 
ing water  suitably  thickened,  as  usual  in  making  sieves  for 
block-printing;  b,  the  framing  that  supports  the  sieve;  and, 
c,  a  felt,  spread  evenly  over  the  sieve,  and  fastened  at  its 
edges  to  the  frame,  d,  is  a  trough,  containing  the  color,  and 
e,  e,  are  brushes ;  and  it  is  the  use  of  a  trough  to  contain  the 


*  Patented  in  May,  1845. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


523 


color,  moving  over  the  surface  of  the  felt  or  sieve-cloth  with 
the  brushes  (instead  of  simply  using  a  brush  to  spread  the 
color),  which  constitutes  the  novelty  of  this  part  of  the  in- 
vention. The  lower  part  of  the  trough  is  open,  and  presses 
upon  the  sieve-cloth ;  hence,  as  the  trough  is  moved,  a  quan- 
tity of  color  is  deposited  upon  the  sieve-cloth,  and  spread 
evenly  by  the  brushes. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


RECENT  INVENTIONS  AND  IMPROVEMENTS  IN  DYE- 
ING AND  CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES. 

CYLINDER-PRINTING,  ETC. 

I.  The  first  series  of  improvements  in  cylinder-printing 
which  we  shall  introduce  in  this  chapter  to  the  notice  of  the 
reader,  are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  Richard  Beard,  of  Egre- 
mont  Place,  New  Road,  London,  and  for  which  he  obtained 
patents  in  June,  1839,  and  October,  1843.  The  first  part  of 
these  improvements  consists  in  printing  two  or  more  colors 
from  the  same  cylinder;  this  is  effected  by  arranging  the 
pattern  thereon  in  such  a  manner  that  all  those  parts  which 
are  required  to  be  of  the  same  color  -shall  follow  one  another 
around  the  cylinder  in  a  direct  line,  so  that  no  crossing  or 
mixture  of  the  colors  may  take  place.  When  engraved 
cylinders  are  used  for  printing,  according  to  this  improve- 
ment, the  color  trough  is  divided,  by  transverse  partitions, 
into  as  many  compartments  as  there  are  rows  of  color  re- 
quired to  form  the  pattern,  and  in  each  compartment  is  a 
small  color-roller,  mounted  upon  an  axis,  which  extends  the 
whole  length  of  the  trough. 

In  Plate  X.,  fig.  1,  is  an  end  view  of  the  color  trough  and 
its  appurtenances ;  and  fig.  2,  is  a  longitudinal  section  of  part, 
of  the  same,  a,  is  the  color  trough ;  and  b,  the  printing 
cylinder,  which  is  supplied  with  different  colors  by  the  rollers, 
c,  fixed  on  the  shaft,  d.  Any  superfluous  color  is  removed 
from  the  cylinder  by  the  "  doctor"  or  scraper,  e,  and  is  con- 
ducted into  its  proper  division  of  the  trough  by  the  partitions, 
/,  (one  of  which  is  shown  separately  at  fig.  3,)  inserted  be- 
tween the  various  compartments,  and  kept  in  contact  with 
the  cylinder  by  means  of  springs,  g.    If  cylinders  with  raised 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


525 


printing  surfaces  are  used,  a  "  furnishing-roller"  is  interposed 
between  each  color-roller  and  the  cylinder. 

The  second  part  of  this  invention  consists  in  a  mode  of 
supplying  color  to  cylinders,  which  have  their  printing  sur- 
faces in  relief,  by  means  of  a  peculiar  construction  of  roller, 
termed  a  "  transmitting-roller."  Around  the  surface  of  this 
roller,  and  extending  the  whole  length  thereof,  are  twelve 
slides,  having  a  number  of  raised  color  surfaces,  covered  with 
cloth;  on. the  under-side  of  each  slide  a  pair  of  rollers  are 
mounted,  which  work  against  eccentric  guides  in  the  interior 
of  the  transmitting  roller ;  so  that,  as  the  transmitting-roller 
revolves,  the  slides  will  be  moved  a  greater  or  less  distance 
endwise,  according  to  the  degree  of  curve  given  to  the  guides. 
The  color  surfaces  are  supplied  with  color  by  a  row  of  carry- 
ing or  furnishing-rollers,  which  work  in  contact  with  the 
color-rollers;  and  any  excess  of  color  is  removed  from  the 
carrying-rollers  and  color  surfaces^  by  the  doctors.  The 
reason  for  moving  the  slides  endwise  is,  to  cause  those  sur- 
faces which  are  to  receive  the  same  description  of  color  to 
follow  one  another  in  a  direct  line,  as  they  approach  the  car- 
rying rollers  ;  and,  after  receiving  the  color,  to  be  arranged  in 
suitable  positions  for  transmitting  it  to  the  required  parts  of 
the  pattern. 

This  will  be  more  clearly  understood  by  reference  to  the 
diagrams,  figs.  4,  and  5  ;  fig.  4,  representing  part  of  some  of 
the  slides  in  suitable  positions  for  transferring  the  color  to  the 
printing  cylinder  ;  and  fig.  5,  shewing  their  relative  positions 
when  in  readiness  for  having  the  color  applied  to  them  by 
the  carrying-rollers.  The  colors  to  be  printed  are  supposed  to 
be  brown,  green,  pink,  and  violet,  represented  by  the  letters,  b, 
g,  p,  and  v,  which  are  also  marked  upon  the  corresponding 
carrying-rollers,  seen  at  fig.  6  ;  and  it  will  be  perceived  that 
the  ends,  *,  of  the  slides  range  evenly  together,  when  trans- 
ferring the  color  to  the  printing  cylinder  ;  but  that,  when  re- 
ceiving the  color,  some  of  the  ends  project  beyond  the  rest,  in 
order  that  the  corresponding  color  surfaces  may  range  in  suit- 
able lines,  as  above  mentioned. 

The  third  improvement  consists  in  producing  cylinders  with 


326 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


printing  surfaces  in  relief,  by  fixing  suitable  raised  figures  or 
designs  upon  metal  cylinders.  A  solder,  consisting  of  twenty 
parts  of  pewter,  eight  of  lead,  four  of  bismuth,  and  one  of 
antimony,  is  preferred  to  be  used  for  fixing  the  designs  on  the 
cylinder ;  the  surface  of  which  is  first  prepared  by  coating  it 
with  a  mixture  of  three  parts  of  water,  three  of  muriatic 
acid,  and  one  of  sal-ammoniac.  The  under  surface  of  the 
parts  forming  the  design  is  coated  with  the  solder  ;  they  are 
then  placed  in  their  proper  positions,  and  held  for  a  short 
time,  while  a  hot  iron  is  applied  to  their  upper  surface,  to 
make  them  adhere. 

The  fourth  and  last  improvement  consists  in  forming  cylin- 
ders for  relief-printing  of  any  suitable  cement  or  composition 
(which  will  become  sufficiently  hard  when  cold,  and  will  not 
be  liable  to  injury  in  the  operation  of  printing),  and  inserting 
therein  the  figures  composing  the  design.  The  composition, 
preferred  by  the  patentee,  is  made  by  melting  one  part  of 
asphaltum,  with  one  of  hog's  lard,  and  five  parts  of  black 
pitch,  with  two  of  white  pitch,  and  then  intimately  mixing 
these  ingredients  with  twenty  parts  of  sand,  and  five  of  red 
ochre.  The  figures  are  sunk  into  the  cylinder  (which  is 
formed  of  the  above  composition)  to  the  depth  of  about  three- 
eighths  of  an  inch,  by  means  of  a  hot  iron,  and  pressure ; 
and  any  irregularity  in  their  surfaces  is  afterwards  reduced 
Dy  filling. 

The  invention  patented  under  the  patent  of  October,  1843, 
above  referred  to,  relates  to  the  "  transmitting,  or  sieve  rollers" 
used  for  supplying  color  to  cylinders  which  have  their  print- 
ing surfaces  in  relief.  The  improvement  consists  in  giving 
the  requisite  elasticity  to  those  rollers  by  the  use  of  glutinous 
or  gelatinous  matter,  which  will  yield  to  pressure-,  and  return 
to  its  original  form  when  the  pressure  is  removed. 

The  composition  preferred  by  the  patentee  is  made  of  glue 
and  molasses,  in  the  proportion  of  from  two  to  three  pounds 
of  glue  (which  has  been  steeped  for  about  six  hours)  to  four 
pounds  of  molasses ;  this  mixture  is  boiled  for  four  or  five 
hours,  and  kept  constantly  stirred.  The  apparatus  used  for 
making  this  composition  into  rollers,  is  represented  in  Plate 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


527 


X.,  fig.  7,  being  a  vertical  section,  and  fig.  8,  a  plan  thereof, 
a,  is  a  cylinder,  formed  by  bending  a  plate  of  zinc,  or  other 
suitable  material,  and  it  is  retained  in  that  shape  by  hoops,  6, 
provided  with  screws  and  nuts  ;  c,  is  an  axis  for  the  roller, 
with  suitably  turned  necks,  at  its  ends  ;  and  d,  d,  are  circu- 
lar plates  fixed  on  the  axis,  c,  to  form  the  ends  of  the  roller  ; 
the  upper  plate  having  two  holes  in  it,  through  one  of  which 
the  composition  is  poured  (the  mould  having  been  previously 
oiled),  and  through  the  other  the  air  escapes.  After  the  com- 
position roller  is  removed  from  the  mould,  it  is  covered  with 
oil-cloth,  and  over  this  is  placed  elastic  cloth  or  felt,  which 
has  been  previously  coated  with  India  rubber  on  the  side 
which  comes  in  contact  with  the  oil-cloth  ;  the  object  being 
to  prevent  the  liquid  color  from  penetrating  to  the  composition. 
The  roller  is  now  ready  for  use. 

When  several  colors  are  to  be  printed  by  the  same  cylinder, 
as  described  and  illustrated  by  the  figs.  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  6,  as 
above  stated,  the  surface  of  the  composition  roller  is  divided 
into  the  requisite  number  of  transmitting  surfaces  by  circular 
plates.  Fig.  9,  is  a  transverse  section,  and  fig.  10,  a  front 
view,  of  part  of  a  color  trough,  with  the  rollers  and  cylinders 
to  be  used  in  printing  calicos,  &c.  e,  is  the  trough,  divided 
into  a  number  of  color  spaces  by  partitions,/;  in  each  space 
a  color  roller,  g,  is  mounted,  and  by  these  the  colors  are  sup- 
plied to  the  sieve-roller,  A,  by  which  they  are  transmitted  to  the 
printing  cylinder,  i  ;  is  the  bowl  or  bed  roller,  round  which 
the  cloth  passes  to  be  printed  ;  and  k,  is  a  common  printing 
cylinder,  for  printing  the  ground  of  the  pattern.  Each  trans- 
mitting surface  on  the  roller,  A,  is  separated  from  the  rest  by 
its  pair  of  plates,  d,  and  the  colors  are  effectually  prevented 
from  becoming  mixed  by  the  partitions,/,  entering  the  spaces 
between  the  transmitting  surfaces  ;  any  superfluous  color  is 
removed  by  the  doctor,  I,  part  of  which  is  shewn  separately 
at  fig.  11. 

II.  The  second  series  of  improvements*  in  cylinder-print 
ing  are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  Joseph  Leese,  of  Manchester 


*  Patented  in  June,  1840. 


528 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


The  improvements  consist,  firstly,  in  the  substitution  of  a 
novel  description  of  fabric  or  material  to  be  employed  in  print- 
ing, instead  of  the  ordinary  blanket,  felt,  or  other  lappings, 
now  commonly  used  upon  printing  machines  and  tables ;  and 
more  particularly  with  reference  to  printing  calicos,  muslins, 
and  other  similar  woven  fabrics  ;  secondly,  in  a  novel  ar- 
rangement of  apparatus,  for  the  purpose  of  printing  calicos, 
&c,  with  blocks,  either  in  combination  with  the  ordinary 
cylinder  printing  machine,  or  separately ;  thirdly,  in  a  novel 
construction  of  mechanism  to  be  applied  to  ordinary  calico 
printing  machines,  for  the  purpose  of  (what  is  technically 
called)  "  rainbowing"  colors,  in  the  cylinder  printing  machine, 
instead  of  performing  such  operation,  separately,  by  hand 
blocks,  as  heretofore ;  and  lastly,  substituting  a  peculiarly 
prepared  fabric,  to  be  used  in  cutting  and  forming  printing 
surfaces,  either  on  blocks  or  cylinders,  instead  of  employing 
felt,  generally  used  for  such  purpose. 

The  first  part  and  main  feature  of  this  invention  is  as  fol- 
lows : — Instead  of  using  the  blanket,  felt,  or  other  ordinary 
bed  or  lappings,  in  cylinder  or  block-printing  machines,  or  on 
printing  tables,  a  fabric,  composed  of  one,  two,  or  more  thick- 
nesses or  folds  of  common  calico  or  other  cloth,  is  used. 

Upon  and  between  these  folds  of  cloth,  thin  layers  or  cover- 
ings of  India-rubber  solution  are  spread.  The  degree  of  elas- 
ticity in  thickness,  and  the  strength  of  the  fabric,  may  be 
varied  to  suit  the  purpose  for  which  it  is  intended  to  be 
used,  and  will,  of  course,  depend  upon  the  number  of  layers 
of  cloth  and  India-rubber,  so  combined,  and  also  the  quality 
of  the  fabrics  employed  ;  as,  for  instance, — if  great  strength 
and  considerable  elasticity  of  surface  is  desired,  a  piece  of 
stout  unbleached  calico  is  coated  with  India-rubber,  and  fold 
laid  upon  fold,  alternately  with  the  layer  of  India-rubber  solu- 
tion, until  the  required  substance  is  attained.  Or  two  or 
three  stout  pieces  of  calico,  or  woolen  cloth,  or  cotton  and 
woolen  combined,  may  be  connected  by  the  solution  of  India- 
rubber  placed  between  them,  thereby  producing  an  adhesion 
to  each  other,  as  firmly  as  if  the  fabric  had  been  woven  in 
one  piece.    This  fabric  may  also  have  upon  its  surface  a 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


529 


thick  layer  or  coating  of  India-rubber ;  and,  in  this  case,  the 
whole  endless  sheet  or  blanket,  when  once  united,  at  its  ends, 
in  the  printing  machine,  may  readily  be  washed,  without  the 
necessity  of  unstitching  and  removing  it  from  the  machine. 

The  advantages  of  the  employment  of  such  improved  fabric 
or  material,  in  place  of  the  ordinary  blanket  and  lappings,  in 
printing,  will  be  evident ;  first,  from  the  great  elasticity  of  the 
surface  to  print  upon,  which  will  enable  the  machine  to  bring 
out,  or  produce,  a  much  finer  impression  than  those  usually 
obtained ;  and  also  with  much  less  power  or  pressure  than 
is  commonly  required ;  secondly,  this  fabric  has  greater 
strength  and  durability,  as  the  layers  of  India-rubber  save 
the  wear  of  the  cloth,  by  preventing  the  friction  resulting 
from  the  rubbing  of  threads,  one  against  another ;  and  lastly, 
its  extreme  economy  or  cheapness,  compared  with  the  usual 
cost  of  blanketing. 

The  second  and  third  parts  of  the  improvements  will  be 
more  readily  understood  by  reference  to  Plate  X.  Fig.  1, 
represents  a  side  elevation  of  an  arrangement  of  apparatus, 
constituting  a  machine  for  printing  calicos,  &c,  to  which  the 
above  described  material  or  lapping  is  particularly  applicable, 
owing  to  its  length  never  varying,  after  its  utmost  tension  is 
obtained,  and  its  elasticity  being  in  its  thickness  only ;  where- 
as an  ordinary  blanket  or  lapping,  could  not  be  effectively 
employed  in  a  similar  arrangement  of  mechanism,  from  its 
liability  to  stretch,  and  thus  misplace  the  print  and  prevent 
the  possibility  of  fitting  the  pattern.  It  consists  of  stout  side- 
frames,  a,  «,  (their  distance  apart  being  regulated  by  the  width 
of  the  goods  to  be  printed,)  supporting  two  cylinders  or  bowls, 
6,  6,  one  at  each  end  ;  around  which  the  endless  band,  c,  c,  is 
passed,  and  which  may  then  be  drawn  to  its  required  tension, 
by  means  of  the  screw,  d ;  the  printing  cloth  or  blanket  is 
now  ready  to  receive  the  cloth  to  be  printed,  which  may  enter 
the  machine  at  e,  extending  upwards,  as  at  a  series  of 
iron  arms  or  frames,  g,  g,  extend  from  the  main  side-frames, 
and  are  provided  with  plain  mortices,  for  the  purpose  of  guid- 
ing the  printing-blocks,  h,  h,  which  are  to  be  slidden  back- 
wards and  forwards  in  them.    The  frames,  g,  g,  also  support 

67 


530 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  color  boxes,  i,  i,  and  the  rollers,  k,  k,  around  which  the 
endless  sieve-cloths,  I,  I,  are  passed. 

The  ends  of  the  printing-blocks,  h,  h,  are  made  fast  to  the 
pinions,  m,  m,  and  turn  in  one  end  of  the  slide  or  working-rods, 
ny  n  ;  thus  it  will  be  seen,  that  as  these  rods,  n,  are  worked 
or  slidden  forward,  (either  by  the  hands  of  the  printer,  or  by 
any  suitable  mechanical  contrivance,)  the  pinion,  m,  will,  by 
working  in  the  straight-rack,  o,  o,  underneath,  turn  over  the 
printing-block,  A,  and  cause  it  to  strike  against  the  sieve-cloth, 
I,  and  thus  be  furnished  with  color ;  when,  by  the  rod,  w, 
being  drawn  backwards,  the  printing  block  will  again  be 
turned  over,  with  its  printing  surface  towards  the  cloth,/,/, 
and  will  print  the  design  or  pattern  upon  it. 

It  will  be  seen  in  the  drawing,  that  a  small  bed  or  table, 
p,  p,  is  placed  under  the  furnishing  and  printing  cloths,  in 
order  to  prevent  any  misprint  or  sudden  concussion  of  the 
block.  These  tables  are  furnished  each  with  a  back  or  bed- 
spring,  q,  q,  and  have  projecting  pieces  at  their  ends,  for  the 
purpose  of  guiding  the  block  square  on  to  its  work,  and  pre- 
vent one  side  or  end  coming  first  in  contact  with  the  cloth  ; 
see  detached  plan  view,  fig.  2. 

The  improvement  in  "  rainbowing  colors,"  by  this  machine, 
will  be  understood  by  reference  to  fig.  3,  which  is  a  vertical 
section,  taken  through  the  middle  of  the  machine,  a,  a,  is 
the  frame  of  a  calico  cylinder  printing  machine,  supporting 
the  printing-bowl,  b; — c,  c,  is  a  common  surface  printing- 
roller  ;  and,  d,  d,  is  a  stand  or  frame,  supporting  the  various 
color-boxes,  e,  e,  e,  e.  The  endless  sieve-cloth,  for  furnish- 
ing the  colors,  is  shewn  at  /  /  tightly  distended  over  the 
rollers,  g,  g,  g,  g,  g. 

The  several  axes,  i,  i,  i,  i,  are  supported  in  small  adjusta- 
ble pedestals  ;  upon  these  axles  are  mounted  discs  or  rollers, 
hhhii  which,  as  they  revolve,  dip  into  the  color-boxes,  and 
being  furnished  with  pins  or  teeth,  they  thus  take  up  the 
colors  from  the  color-boxes,  and  deposit  them  upon  the  sieve- 
cloth,  which  furnishes  the  surface  printing-roller.  Each  of 
the  color-boxes  composing  one  series,  contains  a  different 
shade  of  the  same  color,  and  the  discs  or  rollers,  j,  are  so 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


531 


placed,  that  the  various  shades,  when  spread  on  the  sieve- 
cloth,  will  be  abreast  of  each  other ;  thus  "  the  rainbowing"  is 
produced,  and  conveyed  to  the  surface-roller.  These  discs  or 
rollers,  j,  are  composed  of  wood,  furnished  with  copper  pins  or 
wires,  which  are  capable  of  being  put  up  or  down,  in  order  to 
regulate  the  quantity  of  color  to  be  transferred  from  the  color- 
boxes  to  the  sieve-cloth ;  by  the  travelling  motion  of  which 
they  are  respectively  driven,  the  points  or  wires  being  in  con- 
tact therewith. 

Another  improvement,  more  particularly  adapted  to  paper 
printing,  consists  in  winding  the  paper  or  fabric  to  be  printed, 
upon  the  bowl  of  the  printing-machine,  instead  of  its  being 
wound  on  a  roll,  and  then  drawing  it  through  the  machine 
from  the  back.  The  bowl  of  the  machine  may  be  made  to 
take  in  and  out,  so  that  there  may  be  more  than  one  in  use, 
and  thus  delay  is  prevented. 

When  the  machine  is  to  be  set  to  work,  the  paper  or  cloth 
is  wound  on  the  bowl,  and  the  rollers  are  set  up  to  it,  as  in 
printing  in  the  ordinary  way  ;  the  only  difference  being,  that 
the  diameter  of  the  bowl  decreasing,  as  the  paper  is  printed 
off  it,  the  rollers  must  be  constantly  kept  up  to  it. 

The  last  improvement  consists  in  substituting  any  fabric 
after  it  is  coated  on  one  side  with  India-rubber,  for  the  hatting 
or  felt  commonly  used  in  coating  printing-blocks,  surface- 
rollers,  &c.  If  the  block  or  surface  be  required  to  work  a 
very  heavy  solid  pattern,  the  whole  of  the  block  or  surface 
may  be  covered  with  the  prepared  cloth ;  the  parts  not  in- 
tended to  print  being  afterwards  cut  out,  and  if  necessary  the 
edges  may  be  coppered,  where  the  blocks  are  required  to  work 
finely. 

This  part  of  the  improvements  consists  also  in  placing  at 
the  bottom  of  the  engraving  of  a  deeply-engraved  copper 
cylinder  or  roller,  any  suitable  cloth  or  fabric,  previously  pre- 
pared with  a  coating  of  India-rubber  on  one  side  ;  the  object 
of  this  is  to  produce  an  even  solid  print,  and  also  to  furnish 
a  good  supply  of  color  to  the  piece,  the  roller  being  engraved 
sufficiently  deep  to  allow  the  doctor  to  pass  over  the  surface 
of  the  roller  without  touching  the  surface  of  the  cloth. 


532 


DYEING   AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


III.  The  third  series  of  improvements*  in  cylinder-printing, 
are  of  the  invention  of  Mr.  William  Shepherd,  of  Manches- 
ter. The  improvements  apply  chiefly  to  printing  piece-goods, 
and  consist,  in  the  first  place,  in  the  application  to  such  pur- 
poses of  a  peculiar  preparation  of  caoutchouc  or  India-rubber, 
now  commonly  termed  "  vulcanized  India-rubber,"  either  em- 
ployed as  a  covering  for  rollers  or  bowls,  or  used  as  an  endless 
printing-blanket  or  web,  in  lieu  of  the  ordinary  woolen  or 
other  blanket  at  present  employed. 

It  is  stated  that  the  elasticity  or  compressibility  of  the  vul- 
canized India-rubber  surface  or  blanket  is  much  more  uni- 
form ;  the  tendency  to  harden  or  soften  with  variations  of 
temperature  being  almost  entirely  obviated.  The  improve- 
ment in  printing,  herein  described,  as  resulting  from  the  use 
of  the  vulcanized  India-rubber,  will  be  principally  experienced 
in  the  printing  of  woolen,  cotton,  and  similar  fabrics ;  but  it 
will  also  be  experienced  in  a  great  degree  in  the  letter-press, 
lithographic,  copper-plate,  and  other  printing  processes,  where 
a  woolen  or  other  blanket,  or  elastic  bed,  is  commonly  used. 

The  second  part  of  the  invention  consists  in  the  applica- 
tion of  an  apparatus  to  the  ordinary  printing  machine  for 
cleaning  the  said  vulcanized  India-rubber  web,  or  blanket,  or 
bowl,  by  which  the  use  of  gray  or  unfinished  pieces  of  calico, 
&c,  commonly  employed  for  keeping  the  ordinary  printing 
blanket  clean,  is  dispensed  with,  and  a  great  saving  of  steam 
in  drying,  and  power  in  turning,  is  effected,  a  finer  impression 
is  obtained,  and  the  machine  made  more  compact,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  ordinary  drying  and  blanket  rollers  being  re- 
moved. When  this  improved  web  or  blanket  is  employed  for 
calico  or  similar  printing  by  the  common  machines,  the  web 
or  blanket  to  be  formed  of  vulcanized  India-rubber  should  be 
about  seven-eighths  of  a  yard  wide  (or  of  any  other  conve- 
nient width,  as  required),  and  from  four  to  six  yards  long, 
evenly  joined  at  the  ends  ;  and  as  the  joining  of  the  ends  of 
the  web  has  to  be  effected  before  the  process  of  vulcanizing, 
one  side  of  the  machine  will  require  to  be  moved  to  admit 


*  Patented  in  April,  1845. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


533 


the  blanket  upon  the  printing-bowl ;  it  is  then  passed  over  a 
frame,  of  which  a  sketch  is  exhibited  in  fig.  31,  and  which 
may  be  applied  above  the  printing-machine,  in  place  of  the 
ordinary  blanket-rollers  : — A,  is  the  first  drawing-roller,  made 
of  copper,  turned  quite  true  ;  the  web  or  blanket,  B,  in  pass- 
ing over  this,  comes  in  contact  with  the  doctor,  C,  formed  of 
a  stiff  bar  of  brass,  with  a  flat  edge  towards  the  blanket,  and 
a  sloping  edge  on  the  other  side,  and  having  a  small  trough 
to  receive  the  color  scraped  from  the  blanket ;  it  then  passes 
downwards  in  front  of  a  friction-roller,  D,  over  which  a  short 
endless  blanket  or  web,  E,  E,  (also  of  vulcanized  India-rub- 
ber or  other  suitable  material)  works,  and  in  an  opposite  di- 
rection to  the  printing  blanket,  B ;  the  roller,  D,  being  fluted, 
and  the  web,  E,  drawn  tight  over  it,  and  set  against  the  print- 
ing-blanket by  means  of  the  screw.  The  roller  then  acts 
as  a  circular  doctor,  scraping  and  drying  any  color  that  may 
have  passed  the  first  doctor,  which  color  is  conveyed  along 
the  web,  E,  E,  over  the  roller,  G,  when  it  comes  in  contact 
with  another  doctor,  F,  by  which  the  color  is  ultimately  re- 
moved ;  the  printing-blanket  then  passes  over  a  steam-drying 
cylinder,  H,  and  to  remove  any  damp  that  may  remain  over 
the  tension-roller,  I,  and  then  returned  to  the  printing-roller,  J. 

The  third  part  of  the  invention  con-  Fig.  31. 

sists  in  the  novel  and  peculiar  construc- 
tion of  what  is  termed  in  printing  a 
sieve-roller ;  the  important  feature  of 
novelty  in  which,  is  the  elasticity  im- 
parted to  such  roller  by  the  medium 
of  air,  confined  between  the  outer  cov- 
ering and  inner  body  of  such  sieve-roller. 
These  rollers  are  employed  for  trans- 
ferring color  to  surface-rollers  or  copper 
printing  rollers,  in  printing  woolen  or 
cotton  goods  by  machines.  The  im- 
proved sieve-roller  is  formed  of  an  iron 
centre,  about  one  and  a  half  inches  in 
diameter,  and  about  thirty-two  inches  long  (according  to  the 
machine  it  may  be  required  for),  with  two  flanges  about  five 


534 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


inches  in  diameter  grooved  on  the  edge  to  the  depth  of  half 
an  inch, — the  flanges  to  be  fitted  on  to  the  width  required  for 
the  goods  intended  to  be  printed.  Twenty-eight  inches  will 
be  found  amply  wide  enough  for  seven-eighths  cloth  ;  but  care 
must  be  taken  that  the  flanges  are  fitted  on  so  as  to  be  air- 
tight, and  a  tap  for  admitting  air  must  be  screwed  into  one 
of  the  flanges.  The  grooves  are  fitted  with  strips  of  sheet 
India-rubber,  moistened  with  turpentine,  and  wound  on  until 
level  with  the  edge  of  the  flanges  :  the  space  between  the 
flanges  being  filled  with  soft  flannel  evenly  wound  on  to  the 
level  of  the  flanges.  A  sheet  of  India-rubber  made  in  the  form 
of  a  pipe  or  cylinder  is  then  made  to  fit  the  flanges,  and  it  is 
drawn  over  so  as  to  form  a  covering  for  the  roller  (it  having 
been  previously  dusted  in  the  inside  with  powdered  French 
chalk,  to  cause  it  to  slip  easily) ;  the  ends  are  joined  to  the 
rubber  in  the  grooves  by  moistening  with  turpentine.  The 
roller  must  be  covered  with  a  sheet  of  gauze  or  cotton  cloth 
coated  with  caoutchouc,  which  is  intended  to  prevent  the  In- 
dia-rubber from  distending  when  inflated,  and  for  fixing  on 
the  rings  for  keeping  the  colors  separate,  when  used  for  print- 
ing more  than  one  color ;  the  rings  are  cut  from  a  sheet  of 
rubber  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  thick,  and  to  the  length 
required  to  go  around  the  roller ;  one  edge  to  be  the  thickness 
of  one-eighth  of  an  inch,  and  the  other  tapering ;  they  may 
be  made  to  adhere  by  wetting  the  edge  with  turpentine  and 
applying  it  to  the  gauze  :  the  woolen  sieve  or  strips  are  then 
sewed  on  for  printing.  The  elasticity  of  this  sieve-roller  may 
be  varied  by  regulating  the  quantity  of  air  confined  under  the 
outer  surface  of  the  roller. 

The  fourth  part  of  this  invention  consists  in  the  application 
of  a  covering  of  spongy  or  porous  vulcanized  rubber,  placed 
on  a  centre  or  axis  of  iron  or  wood,  to  be  used  as  a  roller  for 
furnishing  surface  or  copper-printing  rollers  with  color ;  and 
also  the  applying  of  India-rubber  rings  or  divisions,  made 
by  strips  of  rubber  being  attached  to  the  surface  of  ordinary 
woolen  or  other  sieves,  for  surface-printing,  by  which  means 
various  colors  may  be  printed  at  the  same  time,  both  in 
"  pegging"  and  "  rainbowing."    In  forming  the  rollers  from. 


the  spongy  vulcanized  rubber,  a  cylinder  or  tube  made  of 
the  material,  at  least  one  inch  thick,  and  of  the  size  re- 
quired, is  drawn  over  a  wooden  or  iron  centre,  to  fit  the  diam- 
eter of  the  roller,  the  same  as  the  elastic  or  air-roller  before 
described. 


CHAPTER  V. 


CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES. 

THE  MADDER,  PADDING,  AND  RESIST  STYLES. 

We  observed,  on  a  former  occasion,*  that  we  should  give 
everything  of  any  practical  value,  on  calico-printing  processes, 
in  this  and  the  following  chapter,  to  be  found  in  Parnell's 
"  Applied  Chemistry,"  and  Ure's  "  Dictionary  of  Arts,  Manu- 
factures, and  Mines,"  and  in  a  more  convenient  form,  at  least 
for  any  practical  purpose.  We  will  now  proceed  to  the  per- 
formance of  that  promise. 

For  the  gratification  of  such  as  are  not  acquainted  with 
calico-printing  processes,  we  would  state,  that  there  are  sev- 
eral different  styles  of  work,  each  requiring  different  methods 
of  manipulation. 

I.  The  madder  style,  to  which  the  best  chintzes  belong, 
in  which  the  mordants  are  applied  to  the  white  cloth  with 
many  precautions ;  the  colors  being  afterwards  brought  up 
in  the  dye-bath.  On  those  portions  of  the  cloth  on  which  the 
mordant  is  applied,  the  coloring  matter  attaches  itself  in  a 
durable  manner,  but  on  the  unmordanted  portions  the  color  is 
feebly  attached,  so  that  it  may  be  wholly  removed  by  wash- 
ing either  in  soap  and  water,  in  a  mixture  of  bran  and  water, 
or  in  a  dilute  solution  of  chloride  of  lime. 

II.  The  padding  style,  in  which  the  whole  surface  of  the 
calico  is  imbued  with  a  mordant,  upon  which  afterwards  dif- 
ferent colored  figures  may  be  raised,  by  the  topical  application 
of  other  mordants  joined  to  the  action  of  the  dye-bath.  To 
produce  a  figure  in  a  mineral  coloring  material,  the  cloth  may 


*  See  chapter  II,  of  this  Part,  page  466,  note. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


537 


be  first  printed  with  one  of  the  two  saline  solutions,  and  be 
afterwards  uniformly  impregnated  with  the  other.  To  obtain 
a  ground  of  a  mineral  color,  one  or  both  of  the  solutions  may 
be  applied  by  the  padding  machine. 

III.  The  resist  style,  where  the  white  cloth  is  impressed 
with  figures  in  resist  paste,  and  afterwards  subjected  to  a 
cold  dye,  such  for  example,  as  the  indigo  vat,  and  then  to  a 
hot  dye-bath,  with  the  effect  of  producing  white  or  colored 
spots  upon  a  blue  ground.  Resists  are  divisible  into  two 
classes  ;  one  is  employed  to  prevent  the  attachment  of  a  mor- 
dant, and  the  other  that  of  a  coloring  matter. 

IV.  The  discharge  style. — The  object  of  the  processes  be- 
longing to  this  style  of  work,  is  the  production  of  a  white  or 
colored  figure  on  a  colored  ground.  This  is  effected  by  print- 
ing on  the  cloth  already  dyed  or  mordanted,  a  substance 
called  the  discharger,  which  has  the  property  of  decomposing 
either  the  coloring  matter  or  the  mordant.  Chlorine  and 
chromic  acid  are  the  common  discharging  agents  for  decom- 
posing a  vegetable  or  animal  coloring  matter,  and  an  acid  so- 
lution for  a  mordant. 

V.  The  China  blue  style  *  a  style  resembling  blue  stone- 
ware, which  requires  very  peculiar  treatment,  and  is  practised 
with  one  coloring  matter  only,  namely,  indigo. 

VI.  Steam  Colors. — This  style  combines  a  degree  of  bril- 
liancy with  solidity  of  color,  which  can  hardly  be  obtained  in 
any  other  way  except  the  chintz  dyes. 

I.  THE  MADDER  STYLE  ;  called  by  some  dip  colors. 
The  true  chintz  patterns  belong  to  it ;  they  have  from  five  to 
seven  colors,  several  of  which  are  grounded-in  after  the  first 
dye  has  been  given  in  the  madder-bath.  In  dyeing  with 
madder,  sumac,  fustic,  or  quercitron,  is  sometimes  added  to 
the  bath,  in  order  to  produce  a  variety  of  tints  with  the  va- 
rious mordants  at  one  operation. 

1.  Suppose  it  be  wished  to  produce  figures  containing  red, 
purple,  and  black,  the  three  mordants  may  be  applied  at  once 
by  the  three-color  cylinder  machine,  putting  into  the  first 
trough  acetate  of  alumina  thickened  ;  into  the  second,  acetate 
of  iron  ;  and  into  the  third,  a  mixture  of  the  two ;  then  dry- 

68 


538 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ing  in  the  air  for  a  few  days  to  fix  the  iron,  dunging  and  dye- 
ing in  a  bath  of  madder  and  sumac.  If  it  be  wished  to  pro- 
cure the  finest  madder  reds  and  pinks,  besides  the  purple  and 
black,  acetate  of  alumina  of  two  densities  must  only  be  ap- 
plied first  by  two  cylinders,  dry,  dung,  and  dye  in  a  madder 
bath.*  The  mordant  of  iron  liquor  for  the  black,  and  of  iron 
liquor  mixed  with  the  aluminous  for  purple,  must  be  now 
grounded-in  by  blocks,  taking  care  to  insert  these  mordants  in 
their  proper  places :  the  goods  being  then  dried  with  airing 
for  several  days,  and  next  dunged,  are  dyed  in  a  bath  of 
madder  and  sumac.  They  must  be  afterwards  cleared  by 
branning. 

2.  Suppose  it  be  wished  to  produce  yellow  with  red,  pink, 
purple,  and  black ;  in  this  case  the  second  dye  bath  should 
contain  quercitron  or  fustic,  and  the  spots  intended  to  be  yel- 
low should  receive  the  acetate  of  alumina. 

3.  The  mordant  for  a  full  red  may  be  acetate  of  alumina,t 
of  spec.  grav.  1*055,  thickened  with  starch,  and  tinged  with 
Brazil-wood  ;  that  for  a  pale  red  or  pink,  the  same  at  spec, 
grav.  1*014,  thickened  with  gum ;  that  for  a  middling  red, 
the  same  at  spec.  grav.  1*027,  thickened  with  British  gum  ; 
and  for  distinction's  sake,  it  may  be  tinged  yellow  with  Per- 
sian berries.  The  mordant  for  black  is  a  pyroligneous  ace- 
tate of  iron,  of  specific  gravity  1*04 ;  for  purple  the  same, 
diluted  with  six  times  its  volume  of  water ;  for  chocolate,  the 
iron  liquor  mixed  with  acetate  of  alumina,  in  various  propor- 

*  To  obtain  on  cloth  the  finest  madder  reds,  purple,  and  black,  it  is  sometimes 
better  first  to  print  on  only  the  aluminous  mordants  for  the  reds,  by  the  two  or 
three-color  machine,  and  then  to  age,  dung,  and  madder.  The  strong  iron  liquor 
for  black,  and  the  weaker  iron  liquor  for  purple,  may  be  next  grounded  in  their 
proper  places  by  hand-blocks,  after  which  the  drying,  dunging,  and  maddering  are 
repeated.  Sometimes  the  mordants  are  printed  on  at  different  operations,  but  the 
dyeing  is  performed  in  one  bath.  For  example,  the  mordant  for  black  is  printed 
on  first  by  the  single-color  machine,  after  which  the  cloth  is  aged  for  a  day  or  two; 
the  mordants  for  the  other  colors  are  then  grounded-in  by  the  hand-blocks,  and 
the  ageing,  dunging,  dyeing,  &c,  are  performed  in  the  usual  manner.  An  end- 
less variety  of  tints,  from  red  to  chocolate,  may  be  obtained  from  the  same  madder 
bath,  by  mixtures  of  the  iron  and  aluminous  mordant  in  different  proportions. — 
Parnell. 

t  See  chapter  1,  Part  III. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


539 


tions,  according  to  the  shade  wanted.  Sumac  is  mixed  with 
the  madder  for  all  these  colors  except  for  purple.* 

4.  In  the  grounding-in  for  yellow,  after  madder  reds,  the 
aluminous  mordant  being  applied,  &c,  the  piece  is  dyed,  for 
about  an  hour,  with  one  pound  of  quercitron  bark,  the  infu- 
sion being  gradually  heated  to  150°  or  160°,  but  not  higher. 

A  yellow  is  sometimes  applied  in  chints  work  after  the 
other  colors  have  been  given,  by  means  of  a  decoction  of  Per- 
sian berries  mixed  with  the  aluminous  mordant,  thickened 
with  flour  or  gum,  and  printed-on  with  the  block  ;  the  piece, 
when  dry,  is  passed  through  a  weak  carbonated  alkaline  water, 
or  lime  water,  then  washed,  dried,  and  finished  for  the  market. 

Quercitron  is  another  dyeing  material  well  adapted  for  the 
madder  style  of  work.  With  a  mordant  of  red  liquor  of  spec, 
grav.  8°  or  12°  Twad.,  thickened  with  starch,  it  affords  a 
bright  yellow  ;  with  iron  liquor  spec.  grav.  2°  or  3°  Twad.. 
thickened  with  starch,  an  olive-gray  ;  and  with  a  mixture  of 
the  iron  and  aluminous  mordants,  a  great  variety  of  yellow- 
ish-olive tints.  To  produce  a  yellow  ground  with  quercitron, 
the  cloth  may  be  padded  in  red  liquor  of  10°  Twad.,  and 
after  being  dried,  aged  for  two  days,  and  winced  in  warm 
chalky  water,  may  be  dyed  in  an  infusion  of  quercitron,  con- 
taining a  little  glue  or  size.  To  get  a  yellowish  olive  figure 
from  the  same  infusion,  the  cloth  may  be  printed  with  a  mix- 
ture of  red  liquor  at  11°,  and  iron  liquor  at  5°  Twad.,  in  equal 
measures,  and  then  dried,  aged,  dunged,  winced  in  chalky 
water  and  dyed. 

5.  Grounding-in  of  Indigo  blue. — 

Take  half  a  gallon  of  water  at  120°  F.,  8  ounces  of  indigo,  and  8  ounces  of  red 
sulphuret  of  arsenic  (orpiment),  8  ounces  of  quicklime,  mix  together,  and  heat 
the  mixture  to  the  boiling  point;  draw  the  fire,  and  add,  when  lukewarm,  6  ounces 
of  carbonate  of  soda,  stir  and  let  rest  till  the  next  day.  Then  decant  the  clear  li- 
quor, and  thicken  every  quart  of  it  with  half  a  pound  of  gum. 

This  color  should  be  green,  and  preserved  in  a  close  vessel. 
When  used,  it  is  put  into  a  pot  with  a  narrow  orifice,  the 

*  A  beautiful  orange  is  obtained  by  a  mixture  of  decoction  of  cochineal  and  de- 
coction of  quercitron,  with  an  aluminous  mordant ;  and  fine  lilacs  and  violets  by 
decoctions  of  logwood  and  of  cochineal,  with  the  same  mordant. 


540 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


pencil  is  dipped  in,  wiped  on  the  edge  of  the  pot,  and  imme- 
diately applied  by  hand.  This  plan  is  tedious,  and  is  nearly 
superseded  by  the  following  grounding  blue  :— 

Take  half  a  gallon  of  caustic  soda  ley  of  spec.  grav.  1-15,  heated  to  120°  F. 

12  ounces  of  hydrate  of  protoxide  of  tin,  obtained  by  precipitating  it  from  the 
muriate  of  tin  by  solution  of  potash. 

8  ounces  of  ground  indigo ;  heat  these  mixed  ingredients  to  the  boiling  point, 
then  move  the  pot  off  and  on  the  fire  two  or  three  times  in  succession,  and  finally 
thicken  with  three  pounds  of  raw  sugar. 

Fig.  32. 


c 

D 

=3= 

 --B-  

Fig.  33. 


In  order  to  apply  this 
by  the  block,  the  follow- 
ing apparatus  is  employ- 
ed, called  the  canvass 
frame  ;  figs.  32  and  33. 
It  is  formed  of  a  copper 
case  or  box,  A,  in  which 
is  laid  a  frame,  B,  filled 
with  pretty  stout  can- 
vass. The  box  commu- 
nicates by  a  tube  with 
the  cistern,  C,  mounted  with  a  stop-cock,  D.  Fig.  33  repre- 
sents the  apparatus  in  plan :  A,  the  box  ;  B,  the  canvass,  with 
its  edges,  a,  a,  a,  a,  fixed  by  pin  points  to  the  sides.  The  color 
is  spread  even,  with  a  wooden  scraper  as  broad  as  the  canvass. 
In  working  with  this  apparatus,  the  color  contained  in  the  ves- 
sel, C,  is  drawn  off  into  the  case,  A,  by  opening  the  stop-cock, 
D,  till  it  rises  to  the  level  of  the  canvass.  The  instant  before 
the  printer  daubs  the  block  upon  the  canvass,  the  scraper  is 
run  across  it  to  renew  its  surface  ;  and  the  printer  immediately 
transfers  the  color  to  the  cloth.  In  this  kind  of  printing 
great  skill  is  required  to  give  uniform  impressions.  As  the 
blue  is  usually  applied  to  large  designs,  it  is  apt  to  run  ;  an 
inconvenience  counteracted  by  dusting  fine  dry  sand  upon 
the  cloth  as  soon  as  it  is  blocked.  The  goods  must  be 
washed  within  24  hours  after  being  printed. 

6.  Topical  grounding  blue  for  the  cylinder  press. — 

Take  3£  gallons  of  caustic  soda  ley  of  spec.  grav.  1*15. 
3£  lbs.  of  indigo. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


541 


5  lbs.  of  precipitated  protoxide  of  tin. 

Boil  the  mixed  ingredients  for  ten  minutes,  take  from  the  fire,  and  add,  first 

3  lbs.  of  Venice  turpentine;  then  11  lbs.  of  gum. 

Put  this  mixture  into  the  color  trough,  print  with  it,  and 
after  two  days  wash  in  the  dash-wheel ;  then  pass  through  a 
soap  bath,  with  a  little  soda,  to  brighten  the  color  and  to 
drive  off  its  grayish  tint. 

The  use  of  the  turpentine  is  easily  explained ;  it  serves  to 
exclude  the  atmospherical  oxygen,  and  prevent  the  regenera- 
tion of  the  indigo  blue,  before  it  is  spread  upon  the  cloth. 
After  the  application  to  white  calico  of  a  similar  blue,  into 
which  a  little  acid  muriate  of  tin  has  been  put,  the  goods  are 
dipped  for  ten  minutes  in  thin  milk  of  lime,  shaking  the 
frame  all  the  time.  They  are  then  washed,  and  cleared  with 
a  soap  boil. 

7.  Topical  Prussian  blue  for  grounding. — 

2  quarts  of  water  with  8  ounces  of  starch  are  mixed  and  boiled ;  add  2|  ounces 
of  a  liquid  Prussian  blue,  prepared  by  triturating  three  quarters  of  an  ounce  of 
the  pigment  with  as  much  muriatic  acid,  leaving  the  ingredients  to  react  upon  each 
other  for  24  hours,  and  then  adding  three  quarters  of  an  ounce  of  water.  Add 

4  ounces  of  liquid  perchloride  of  tin  (oxy muriate).  Mix  all  together,  and  pass 
through  a  searce.* 

8.  Prussian  blue  figures  are  impressed  as  follows  : — 

Dissolve  8  ounces  of  sulphate  of  iron,  and  as  much  acetate  of  lead,  separately, 
in  2  quarts  of  boiling  water ;  mix  well,  and  let  settle.  Take  1  quart  of  this  liquor 
reduced  to  spec.  grav.  1-02,  1  quart  of  mucilage  containing  3  pounds  of  gum,  col- 
ored with  a  little  prussiate  of  potash,  mix  into  a  mordant,  and  print  it  on  with  the 
cylinder.  Two  days  afterwards  wash  in  tepid  water  containing  a  little  chalk,  and 
then  pass  the  cloth  through  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash  in  water,  sharpened 
with  a  little  muriatic  acid,  till  it  takes  the  desired  hue.    Rinse  and  dry. 

When  black  is  one  of  the  colors  wanted,  the  mordant  is 
very  commonly  printed  on  first,  and  the  goods  hung  upon 
poles  in  the  drying-room,  where  they  are  aired  for  a  few  days, 
in  order  to  fix  the  iron  by  its  peroxidizement ;  the  mordants 
for  red,  violet,  &c,  are  then  grounded  in,  and  the  pieces  dyed, 
after  dunging  and  washing,  in  the  madder  bath,  into  which, 
for  certain  shades,  sumac,  galls,  or  fustic  is  added.  The 
goods  are  brightened  by  a  boil  in  soap  water  ;  occasion- 


*  This  color  is  not  very  fast ;  cloth  printed  with  it  will  bear  only  rinsing. 


542 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ally  also  in  a  bath,  containing  a  small  quantity  of  solution  of 
tin  or  common  salt.  The  following  mode  of  brightening  is 
much  extolled  by  the  French,  who  are  famous  for  their  reds, 
roses,  &c.  : — 

1.  A  soap  boil  of  forty  minutes,  at  the  rate  of  one  pound  for  every  two  pieces. 

2.  Pass  through  chloride  of  soda  solution,  of  such  strength  that  two  parts  of  it 
decolor  one  part  of  Gay  Lussac's  test  liquor.*  Wince  the  pieces  through  it  for 
forty  minutes.  Rinse. 

3.  Pass  again  through  the  soap  bath,  No.  1. 

4.  Brighten  in  a  large  bath  of  boiling  water,  containing  4  pounds  of  soap,  and 
1  pound  of  a  cream-consistenced  salt  of  tin,  containing  nearly  half  its  weight  of 
the  muriate  of  tin,  combined  with  as  much  nitric  acid  of  spec.  grav.  1-288.  This 
strong  nitro-muriate  having  been  diluted  with  a  little  water,  is  to  be  slowly  poured 
into  the  soap  bath,  and  well  stirred.  The  pieces  are  now  put  in,  and  winced  for 
half  or  three  quarters  of  an  hour. 

5.  Repeat  the  soap  boil,  No.  1.    Rinse  and  dry. 

A  very  good  orange  is  sometimes  communicated  to  cotton 
goods  in  this  style  of  work,  by  dyeing  in  a  mixed  infusion  of 
madder  and  quercitron,  an  aluminous  mordant  having  been 
previously  applied  to  the  cloth.  For  a  ground,  the  cloth  may 
be  padded  in  red  liquor  of  10°  or  12°  Twad.,  then  winced  in 
warm  chalky  water,  and  dyed  in  a  decoction  of  two  pounds  of 
quercitron  and  a  pound  and  a  half  of  madder  per  piece.  By 
varying  the  proportions  of  the  madder  and  quercitron  various 
shades  of  orange  from  golde7i-yellow  to  scarlet  may  be  pro- 
duced. An  endless  variety  of  cinnamon,  olive,  and  fawn  col- 
ored tints  may  also  be  obtained  by  applying  mixtures,  in  vari- 
ous proportions,  of  red  liquor  and  iron  liquor,  and  by  dyeing 
in  a  mixed  infusion  of  madder  and  quercitron. 

6.  Violet  mordants.} — These  consist  either  of  a  very  weak 
solution  of  acetate  of  iron  of  specific  gravity  1*007,  for  exam- 
ple;  or  of  a  little  of  the  stronger  acetate  of  1*04,  mixed  with 
acetate  of  alumina,  and  a  little  acetate  of  copper,  thickened 
with  starch  or  British  gum.  The  shades  may  be  indefinitely 
varied  by  varying  the  proportions  of  the  acetates. 

*  See  chapter  I,  Part  II. 

t  Puce  mordant. — Take  a  quart  of  acetate  of  alumina  and  acetate  of  iron,  each 
of  spec.  grav.  104,  mixed  and  thickened  like  the  black,  No.  6.  To  give  the  puce 
a  reddish  tinge,  the  acetate  of  alumina  should  have  a  specific  gravity  of  1-048,  and 
the  iron  liquor  only  1-007. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


543 


7.  Black  mordant. — 

Take  half  a  gallon  of  acetate  of  iron,  of  spec.  grav.  1  04,  4  ounces  of  starch, 
and  4  ounces  of  flour.  The  starch  must  first  be  moistened  with  the  acetate, 
then  the  flour  must  be  added,  the  rest  of  the  acetate  well  mixed  with  both,  and 
the  whole  made  to  boil  over  a  brisk  fire  for  five  minutes,  stirring  meanwhile  to 
prevent  adhesion  to  the  bottom  of  the  pot.  The  color  must  be  poured  into  an 
earthen  pipkin,  and  well  mixed  with  half  an  ounce  of  gallipoli  oil.  In  general, 
all  the  mordants,  thickened  with  starch  and  flour,  should  be  boiled  for  a  few  min- 
utes. With  British  gum  or  common  gum,  they  must  be  heated  to  160°  F., 
for  the  purpose  merely  of  dissolving  them.  The  latter  should  be  passed  through 
a  sieve  to  separate  the  impurities  often  present  in  common  gum.* 

II.  THE  PADDING  STYLE. — Any  mordant  whatever, 
such  as  the  acetates  of  alumina,  or  of  iron,  or  their  mixture, 
may  be  applied  to  the  piece  by  the  padding  machine,  after 
which  it  is  dried  in  the  hot  flue,  washed,  dunged,  dyed,  washed, 
and  brightened. 

Mineral  coloring  matters  are  adapted,  not  only  to  the  pro- 
duction of  designs  on  a  white  or  colored  ground,  but  also  to 
form  a  ground  for  the  reception  of  a  design  in  other  colors. 
To  impart  the  color  to  the  entire  surface  of  the  cloth,  the  lat- 
ter may  be  impregnated  successively,  by  the  padding  machine, 
with  the  two  solutions  necessary  to  produce  the  color,  or  the 
cloth  may  be  padded  in  one  of  the  solutions  and  afterwards 
winced  in  the  other.  To  produce  a  design  in  a  mineral  color- 
ing matter  on  a  white  or  colored  ground,  the  cloth  is  usually 
first  printed  with  one  of  the  solutions,  and  then  either  padded 
or  winced  in  the  other. 

1.  Chrome-yellow. — Yellow  and  orange  are  produced  by 
the  two  chromates  of  lead,  chrome-yellow  and  chrome- 
orange. 

To  impart  a  ground  of  chrome-yellow,  the  cloth  should  be  padded  with  a  solu- 
tion of  two  pounds  of  acetate  of  lead  in  a  gallon  of  water  containing  a  little  size, 
then  dried,  passed  first  through  a  weak  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda,  and  after- 
wards through  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash.    Rinse  and  dry. 

*  To  produce  a  black  ground,  the  cloth  may  be  padded  in  a  mixture  of  equai 
measures  of  red  liquor  at  8°  Twad.,  and  iron  liquor  at  6°  Twad.,  and  after  having 
been  dried,  aged,  and  winced  in  chalky  water,  it  may  be  dyed  in  a  decoction  of 
logwood  made  from  two  pounds  and  a  half  or  three  pounds  per  piece,  with  the 
addition  of  a  small  quantity  of  sumac.  A  grey  color  is  obtained  in  the  same  way 
by  using  very  weak  iron  liquor  and  a  weak  decoction  of  the  coloring  matter;  and 
a  violet  color,  by  applying  weak  red  liquor  to  the  cloth. — Parnell. 


544 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


To  apply  chrome-yellow,  the  cloth  may  be  printed  with  a 
solution  containing  both  acetate  and  nitrate  of  lead  (from 
seven  to  ten  ounces  of  each  to  the  gallon)  thickened  with 
starch.  After  being  printed  and  dried,  the  cloth  is  winced 
first  in  a  weak  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda,  and  next  in  a 
solution  of  bichromate  of  potash,  containing  about  two  ounces 
per  piece.  To  clear  the  whites,  the  cloth  may  be  winced  in 
water  slightly  acidulated  with  muriatic  acid.* 

2.  Prussian  blue. — To  impregnate  the  entire  surface  of 
a  piece  of  cloth  with  Prussian  blue,  it  may  be  treated  in  the 
following  manner : — 

1.  Pad  in  a  solution  of  acetate  and  sulphate  of  iron  made  by  adding  three 
pounds  of  acetate  of  lead  to  a  solution  of  four  pounds  of  copperas  in  a  gallon  of 
water,  decanted  from  the  precipitated  sulphate  of  lead  and  diluted  to  the  density 
2°  or  3°  Tw. 

2.  Dry  and  wince  in  warm  chalky  water. 

3.  Wince  in  a  solution  of  a  pound  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash  in  forty  gal- 
lons of  warm  water,  to  which  add  four  ounces  of  oil  of  vitriol. 

To  produce  a  design  in  Prussian  blue  by  this  style  of  work, 
the  cloth  may  be  printed  with  a  mixed  solution  of  acetate  and 
sulphate  of  iron,  made  as  above,  of  spec.  grav.  4°  or  5°  Tw., 
thickened  with  gum  and  "  sightened"  by  the  addition  of  a 
little  prussiate  of  potash.  Age,  wince  in  chalky  water,  clean, 
and  wince  until  the  desired  shade  is  obtained,  in  a  solution 
containing  three  or  four  ounces  of  prussiate  of  potash,  and 
one  ounce  of  muriatic  acid  per  piece. 

Chrome-orange. — A  ground  of  chrome-orange  may  be 
communicated  to  a  piece  of  cotton  by  first  applying  chrome- 
yellow  in  the  ordinary  manner,  and  exposing  the  cloth  to 
boiling  lime-water,  which  withdraws  a  portion  of  the  chromic 


*  Chrome-yellow. — Pad  in  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash  containing  8 
ounces  to  the  gallon  of  water ;  then  dry  with  moderate  heat,  and  pad  in  a  solution 
of  acetate  or  nitrate  of  lead,  containing  6  or  8  ounces  to  the  gallon  of  water ; 
wash,  and  dry.  Or  pad  first  in  a  solution  of  acetate  of  lead  containing  a  little 
glue  j  dry,  and  pad  in  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash.  Then  rinse.  The  last 
process  is  apt  to  occasion  cloudiness.  To  obtain  a  light  lemon  tint,  pad  in  a  solu- 
tion of  acetate  of  lead  of  double  the  above  strength,  or  16  ounces  to  the  gallon, 
then  wince  the  pieces  through  weak  milk  of  lime,  rinse,  pad  through  bichromate 
of  potash,  rinse  and  dry. —  Ure. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


545 


acid  from  the  chrome-yellow  and  leaves  chrome-orange: 
thus,  < 

1.  Pad  the  cloth  twice  in  a  saturated  solution,  in  water,  of  acetate  and  nitrate 
of  lead ;  in  the  proportion  of  a  pound  of  nitrate  to  a  pound  and  a  quarter  of  ace- 
tate.*   Dry  in  the  hot  flue. 

2.  Wince  in  weak  milk  of  lime  for  a  few  minutes. 

3.  Wince  in  a  warm  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash  containing  five  or  six 
ounces  per  piece. 

4.  Wince  in  boiling  milk  of  lime.    Rinse  and  dry. 

To  produce  a  design  in  chrome-orange  on  a  white  ground, 
print  with  a  saturated  solution  of  acetate  and  nitrate  of  lead 
(as  above)  thickened  with  British  gum  ;  dry,  and  pass  through 
a  solution  of  sulphate  of  soda  to  fix  the  oxide  of  lead  in  an 
insoluble  state,  wash  well  in  water,  and  wince  in  a  warm 
solution  of  bichromate  of  potash.  Rinse,  and  pass  through 
boiling  milk  of  lime  to  convert  the  chrome-yellow  into  chrome- 
orange. 

A  design  in  chrome-yellow,  on  a  chrome-orange  ground, 
may  be  obtained  by  printing  an  acid  on  the  orange  ground, 
to  withdraw  the  excess  of  oxide  of  lead  from  the  subchromate 
(orange),  and  thus  form  the  neutral  chromate  (yellow). 

Different  shades  of  green  may  be  given  by  a  mixture  of 
chrome-yellow  with  Prussian  blue.  The  cloth  is  first  padded 
with  a  mixture  of  acetate  of  iron  and  nitrate  of  lead,  and 
winced  in  a  solution  of  prussiate  of  potash  and  bichromate  of 
potash  with  a  small  quantity  of  muriatic  acid. 

To  obtain  a  green  design  by  conjoining  chrome-yellow  with 
indigo-blue,  print  with  a  solution  of  from  two  pounds  to  two 
pounds  and  a  half  of  nitrate  of  lead,  in  a  gallon  of  neutralized 
mixture  of  white  indigo  with  solution  of  tin.  After  printing, 
pass,  first,  through  a  warm  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda,  to 
fix  the  blue  and  oxide  of  lead,  and  then  through  a  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash  to  raise  the  yellow.t 


*  Water  is  capable  of  dissolving  nearly  twice  as  much  of  a  mixture  of  acetate 
and  nitrate  of  lead,  in  the  proportion  of  single  equivalents,  as  of  either  of  the 
salts  separately. — Parnell. 

t  Chrome  Orange. — Pad  through  a  mixed  solution  of  the  subacetate  and  acetate 
of  lead,  three  times  in  succession,  and  dry  in  the  hot-flue;  then  wince  for  tenmhv 

69 


546 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Green  is  given  by  padding  goods,  previously  dyed  in  the 
indigo  vat,  in  a  solution  of  acetate  of  lead  containing  a  little 
glue  ;  and  then  padding  them  in  a  warm  solution  of  bichro- 
mate of  potash ;  finally  rinsing  and  drying.  To  obtain  a 
ground  of  Scheele's  green,  (arsenite  of  copper,)  pad  two  or  three 
times  with  a  solution  of  nitrate  of  copper,  or  with  a  mixture 
of  the  sulphate  and  acetate  containing  a  little  size,  and  after 
drying,  wince  in  a  dilute  solution  of  a  caustic  alkali,  to  fix 
the  oxide  of  copper,  The  cloth  is  next  rinsed  in  water  and 
winced  in  a  dilute  solution  of  arsenious  acid,  or  in  a  solution 
of  arsenite  of  soda. 

Mineral  colors  are  frequently  combined  with  steam  and 
madder  colors  in  the  same  design.  When  this  is  the  case, 
the  madder  colors  should  be  applied  first,  the  mineral  colors 
next,  and  the  steam  colors  last.  The  following  method  of 
procuring  a  design  in  black,  purple,  two  shades  of  red,  two 
shades  of  burl,  green  and  yellow,  on  a  white  ground,  is  an  ex- 
ample of  the  combinations  of  mineral  colors  with  madder  and 
steam  colors  : 

1.  Print  the  cloth  by  the  four-color  machine  with  the  mordants  for  black,  purple, 
and  two  reds ; 

2.  Age,  dung,  dye  in  the  madder  bath,  clear  and  dry, 

3.  Print  with  the  two-color  machine  (or  with  blocks,  according  to  the  design) 
with  buff-liquor  of  two  strengths,  thickened  with  starch  or  British  gum ; 

4.  Age,  and  wince  in  milk  of  lime,  to  raise  the  buff ;  then  rinse  in  water ; 

5.  Dry  and  print  with  blocks  with  mixtures  for  steam  blue,  and  steam  yellow. 

6.  Age,  steam,  and  rinse.* 

Copper  green  is  given  by  padding  in  a  mixed  solution  of 
sulphate  and  acetate  of  copper  with  a  little  glue,  drying  in  the 
hot  flue,  and  next  day  padding  in  a  caustic  ley  of  spec.  grav. 
105.  The  goods  are  then  rinsed,  and  padded  through  a  so- 
lution made  with  8  ounces  of  arsenious  acid  combined  with 


utes  through  weak  milk  of  lime ;  rinse ;  wince  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour  in  a  warm 
solution  of  bichromate  of  potash ;  and  finally  raise  the  color  by  wincing  the  goods 
through  hot  lime-water. —  lire. 

*  A  pleasing  pattern  may  be  obtained  by  combining  in  one  design,  on  a  white 
ground,  figures  or  bars,  in  different  shades  of  iron  buff,  with  a  figure  or  stripe  in 
steam  blue.    The  buffs  are  first  applied  in  the  usual  manner. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


547 


4  ounces  of  potash  diluted  with  2  gallons  of  water.  Rinse 
and  dry.* 

Iron  buff. — The  solutions  of  iron  in  common  use  for  iron 
buff  are  the  pernitrate  and  a  mixture  of  the  acetate  with  the 
protosulphate,  obtained  by  adding  from  one  to  three  parts  of 
acetate  of  lead  (pyrolignite)  to  three  parts  of  copperas.  Dou- 
ble decomposition  takes  place  between  the  acetate  of  lead  and 
a  portion  of  the  copperas,  with  formation  of  acetate  of  iron  and 
sulphate  of  lead.  For  light  shades,  alum  is  sometimes  added, 
together  with  a  little  carbonate  of  soda  to  take  up  a  portion 
of  the  acid  of  the  alum.  Acetate  of  lime  is  frequently  sub- 
stituted for  acetate  of  lead,  in  the  preparation  of  "  buff- 
liquor." 

To  impart  a  buff  ground,  the  pieces  are  padded  in  a  liquor 
of  any  strength  between  2°  and  10°  Tw.,  according  to  the 
shade  desired,  then  dried  by  being  drawn  either  through  the 
hot-flue  or  over  iron  boxes  filled  with  steam,  and  aged  for 
one  or  two  days.  Some  printers  then  wince  the  pieces  in 
water  containing  a  little  chalk,  and  afterwards  pass  through  a 
solution  of  carbonate  of  soda  ;  but  it  is  better  to  pass  them  at 
once  through  a  solution  of  caustic  soda,  or  through  milk  of 
lime. 

During  the  ageing  of  the  padded  goods  the  salts  of  the 
protoxide  of  iron  become  subsalts  of  the  peroxide,  which  are 
decomposed  in  the  alkaline  or  calcareous  solutions,  the  acids 
being  withdrawn  by  the  alkali  while  the  peroxide  of  iron  be- 
comes fixed  on  the  cloth. 

To  obtain  an  iron  buff  figure,  the  pieces  may  be  printed 
with  a  buff  liquor  of  any  strength  between  10°  and  30°  Tw.,t 


*  Olive  and  cinnamon  colors  are  given  by  padding  through  mixed  solutions  of 
the  acetate  of  iron  and  sulphate  of  copper ;  drying,  and  padding  in  a  caustic  ley 
of  spec.  grav.  105. 

t  Iron  buff. — Take  50  gallons  of  boiling  water ;  150  pounds  of  sulphate  of  iron; 
dissolve  along  with  10  pounds  of  alum ;  which  partly  saturate  by  the  gradual  ad- 
dition of  5  pounds  of  crystals  of  soda ;  and  in  this  mixture  dissolve  50  pounds 
of  pyroligneous  acetate  of  lead.  Allow  the  whole  to  settle,  and  draw  off  the  clear 
supernatant  liquid.  For  furniture  prints  this  bath  should  have  the  spec.  grav. 
1-07.  The  goods  being  padded  in  it,  are  dried  in  the  hot-flue ;  and  after  48  hours 
suspension  are  to  be  washed  in  water  at  170°  containing  a  little  chalk,  by  the 


548 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


thickened  with  either  gum,  calcined  farina,  salep,  or  British 
gum.  After  being  dried  and  aged,  the  pieces  are  passed 
directly  through  a  solution  of  caustic  soda,  or  milk  of  lime. 

Manganese  bronze. — A  brown  ground  may  be  produced 
by  manganese  bronze  or  peroxide  of  manganese.  A  solution 
of  manganese  sufficiently  pure  for  producing  the  bronze,  may 
be  obtained  from  the  residue  of  the  process  for  chlorine,  by 
saturating  the  remaining  free  sulphuric  or  muriatic  acid  with 
chalk,  allowing  the  precipitate  to  settle,  and  decanting  and 
concentrating  the  clear  supernatant  liquid.  The  chalk  serves 
not  only  to  saturate  the  free  acid,  but  to  precipitate  peroxide 
of  iron  from  the  soluble  salts  of  that  oxide  which  this  bye- 
product  always  contains.  Lime  has  been  recommended  for 
this  purpose  instead  of  chalk,  but  it  is  never  employed  on  the 
large  scale,  as  an  excess  would  decompose  the  salts  of  man- 
ganese as  well  as  those  of  iron ;  an  excess  of  chalk,  however, 
is  without  action  on  the  manganese  salt.  A  purer  solution 
of  manganese  may  be  prepared  by  heating  the  residue  of  the 
chlorine  process  with  more  black  oxide  of  manganese,  until 
the  evolution  of  chlorine  almost  ceases,  and  then  adding, 
either  chalk,  or  freshly  precipitated  carbonate  of  manganese, 
until  the  liquid  becomes  colorless.  Having  been  allowed  to 
settle,  the  solution  is  decanted  and  concentrated  by  evapora- 
tion. 

To  impart  a  dark  bronze  ground,  the  strength  of  the  solu- 
tion of  the  chloride  of  manganese  may  be  about  26°  Twad. 
For  lighter  shades  it  may  be  made  as  weak  as  4°  Twad. 

After  padding*  and  drying,  the  goods  are  passed  through  a  • 


wince.  The  goods  are  then  washed,  by  the  same  apparatus,  in  hot  water,  con- 
taining a  pailful  of  soda  ley  of  spec.  grav.  104.  For  light  tints  the  padding 
liquor  should  be  reduced  to  the  spec.  grav.  101.  The  dye  in  either  case  may  be 
brightened  by  wincing  through  a  weak  solution  of  chloride  of  lime.  Nitrate  ol 
iron  diffused  through  a  body  of  water  may  be  also  used  for  padding,  with  alter- 
nate washings  in  water,  and  a  final  wincing  in  a  weak  alkaline  ley.  With  ? 
stronger  solution,  similar  to  the  first,  the  boot-top  color  is  given. —  Ure. 

*  Manganese  Bronze. — The  goods  are  padded  in  a  solution  of  the  sulphate  01 
muriate  of  manganese,  of  a  strength  proportional  to  the  shade  desired,  dried  in  the 
hot-flue,  and  raised  by  wincing  in  a  boiling  hot  caustic  ley,  of  spec.  grav.  108,  and 
next  passed  through  a  weak  solution  of  chloride  of  lime,  or  soda,  and  rinsed.  In- 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


549 


cold  caustic  ley,  whereby  protoxide  of  manganese  becomes 
precipitated  on  the  cloth.  On  exposure  to  the  air,  the  prot- 
oxide soon  absorbs  oxygen,  passing  into  the  state  of  the  brown 
peroxide  ;  but  the  peroxide  may  be  produced  immediately  by 
wincing  the  goods  in  a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime  or  chloride 
of  soda,  as  soon  as  taken  out  of  the  caustic  ley.  The  com- 
mon practice  is  to  expose  the  pieces  to  the  air  until  they  ac- 
quire a  good  full  color,  and  then  to  complete  the  peroxidation 
of  the  manganese  by  a  dilute  solution  of  chloride  of  lime. 

Peroxide  of  manganese  is  very  seldom  applied  as  a  figure 
on  a  white  ground.  The  solution  of  the  chloride  used  for 
this  purpose  may  have  a  density  of  about  16°  Tw.,  and  be 
thickened  with  from  two  to  two  and  a  half  pounds  of  gum  to 
the  gallon.  A  small  quantity  of  tartaric  acid  is  a  useful  ad- 
dition to  such  a  solution.  The  cloth,  when  printed  and  dried, 
is  drawn  through  a  caustic  ley,  exposed  to  the  air,  and  winced 
in  a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime. 

III.  THE  RESIST  STYLE.— The  object  of  the  resist 
style  of  work  is  to  produce  a  white  or  colored  design  on  a 
colored  ground  by  the  topical  application,  in  the  first  place, 
of  a  substance  called  resist  paste,  which  has  the  property  of 
preventing  the  attachment  of  color,  when  the  whole  surface 
of  the  cloth  is  afterwards  impregnated  with  a  dyeing  material. 
One  class  of  resists,  consisting  of  substances  of  an  unctuous 
nature,  acts  merely  mechanically  ;  another  both  mechanically 
and  chemically.  The  latter  kind  are  divisible  into  two  sub- 
divisions, according  as  their  influence  is  exerted  on  the  mor- 
dant or  on  the  coloring  matter  itself. 

1.  Fat  Resists. — Resists  of  an  unctuous  nature  are  chiefly 
used  for  silken  and  woolen  goods,  but  they  may  be  also  ad- 
vantageously applied,  in  particular  circumstances,  to  goods 


stead  of  passing  the  goods  through  the  chloride,  they  may  be  merely  exposed  to 
the  air  till  the  manganese  attracts  oxygen,  then  rinsed  and  dried.  When  the  man- 
ganese solution  has  the  density  of  1  027,  it  gives  a  light  shade ;  at  the  density  of 
106,  a  shade  of  moderate  depth,  and  at  112  a  dark  tint.  The  texture  of  the  goods 
is  apt  to  be  injured  during  the  oxidation  of  the  manganese.  Carmelite  is  obtained 
by  padding  in  a  mixture  of  muriate  or  sulphate  of  manganese  and  acetate  of  iron. 
—  Ure. 


550 


DYEING  AN D  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  cotton  ;  as  in  the  combinations  of  such  a  style  of  work 
with  madder  colors  and  steam  colors.  In  an  early  stage  of 
the  process,  after  having  been  printed,  dyed,  and  cleared,  the 
red  and  lilac  figures  are  covered  with  a  resist  consisting,  usu- 
ally, of  a  mixture  of  suet  and  gum-water.  The  whole  is 
then  run  over  by  the  roller  with  weak  iron  liquor  for  the  lilac 
ground ;  the  cloth  is  then  aged,  dunged,  dyed,  and  cleared. 

The  mixtures  for  steam  green  and  steam  yellow  are  after- 
wards put  on  by  blocks ;  the  steaming  being  performed  in  the 
usual  manner.  In  this  style  of  work,  the  dyeing  with  mad- 
der might  as  well  be  performed  at  one  operation,  as  the  red 
lilac  mordants  are  not  at  all  injured  by  the  fat  resist  with 
which  they  are  covered. 

2.  Resist  for  Mordants. — The  material  generally  used  for 
preventing  the  deposition  of  a  mordant  on  particular  parts  of 
the  cloth  is  an  acid  or  acidulous  salt  capable  of  uniting  with 
the  base  of  the  mordant,  to  form  a  compound  soluble  in  water 
and  not  decomposable  into  an  insoluble  subsalt  during  the 
hanging  of  the  mordanted  goods,  previous  to  dunging  and 
dyeing.  The  resist  commonly  employed  for  the  iron  and  alu- 
minous mordants  is  lemon-juice  or  lime-juice,  or  a  mixture  of 
one  of  these  with  tartaric  and  oxalic  acids  and  bisulphate  of 
potash.  The  thickening  material  is  either  a  mixture  of  pipe- 
clay or  china-clay  with  common  gum,  a  mixture  of  British 
gum  with  gum  Senegal,  or  British  gum  alone.  Lemon-juice 
or  lime-juice  is  decidedly  preferred  to  pure  citric  acid  (which 
is  the  acid  principle  of  these  juices),  as  the  mucilaginous 
matters  in  the  former  impede  the  crystallization  of  the  acid 
within  the  pores  of  the  cloth,  and  thus  render  it  better  adapted 
to  prevent  the  attachment  of  the  mordant  in  an  insoluble  form. 

A  design  in  black,  lilac  and  white  on  a  lilac  ground,  may 
oe  produced  by  adapting  the  resist  style  of  work  to  madder 
colors.  The  printing  for  such  a  pattern  may  be  performed  by 
the  three-color  machine  in  the  following  order : — 

By  the  first  roller ;  the  resist,  which  may  be  either  lemon-juice  of  spec.  grav.  2° 
or  3°  Twad.,  thickened  with  four  pounds  of  British  gum  to  the  gallon,  or  a  so- 
lution of  about  the  same  density,  of  tartaric  and  oxalic  acids  in  weaker  lemon- 
juice,  also  thickened  with  British  gum : 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


551 


By  the  second  roller;  the  mordant  for  the  black  (iron  liquor  of  spec.  grav.  8° 
Twad.)  thickened  with  a  pound  and  a  half  of  flour  to  the  gallon : 

By  the  third  roller ;  the  mordant  for  the  ground  of  lilac  (iron  liquor  of  spec, 
grav.  1£°  Twad.),  thickened  with  four  pounds  of  British  gum  to  the  gallon. 

The  application  of  the  mordant  for  the  ground  may  be 
made  by  the  padding  machine,  but  it  is  more  commonly  done 
by  the  cylinder  machine,  the  entire  surface  of  the  copper 
roller  being  slightly  roughened  or  engraved  in  close  diagonal 
lines  to  enable  it  to  afford  an  uniform  deposit  on  the  cloth.* 

Iron  liquor  may  be  resisted  or  prevented  from  affording  a 
deposit  of  insoluble  subsulphate  during  the  ageing,  by  a  pro- 
cess somewhat  different  from  that  just  described,  the  resisting 
agent  being  protochloride  of  tin  (generally  called  salts  of  tin), 
instead  of  a  free  acid  or  an  acidulous  salt.  A  mixture  of 
protochloride  of  tin  and  iron  liquor  does  not  afford  a  deposit 
of  a  subsalt  of  iron  during  the  ageing  of  goods  printed  with 
the  mixture,  probably  through  the  occurrence  of  a  double 
decomposition,  with  formation  of  acetate  of  tin  and  chloride 
of  iron.  The  latter  compound  does  not  afford  an  insoluble 
precipitate  during  the  ageing,  and  may  be  entirely  removed 
from  the  cloth  by  washing. 

When  a  piece  of  cotton  cloth  is  printed  with  a  solution  of 
salts  of  tin  by  the  first  roller  of  a  two-color  machine,  and  with 
iron  liquor  by  the  second  roller,  over  the  parts  printed  by  the 
first  roller,  such  a  mixture  as  the  above  is  of  course  formed 
wherever  the  salt  of  tin  had  been  applied,  and  no  subacetate 
of  iron  is  deposited  there  during  the  ageing. 

The  protochloride  of  tin,  however,  is  never  applied  in  this 
way  with  a  view  of  producing  a  white  figure  on  a  colored 
ground  ;  it  is  commonly  mixed  with  red  liquor,  as  the  deposi- 
tion of  the  insoluble  subsulphate  of  alumina  from  that  prepara- 
tion is  not  interfered  with  by  the  protochloride.  After  a  piece 
of  cloth  thus  printed  has  been  aged,  dunged,  dyed  in  the 
madder-bath,  and  cleared,  it  therefore  presents  a  red  figure 

*  The  operations  of  ageing,  dunging,  dyeing,  and  clearing,  are  conducted  in 
much  the  same  manner  as  if  the  acid  resist  had  not  been  applied.  It  is  usual,  in 
this  style  of  work,  to  add  a  small  quantity  of  chalk  to  the  dung-bath,  in  order  to 
counteract  the  effects  of  the  free  acid  in  the  resist. — Parnell. 


552 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


surrounded  by  purple  or  lilac.  It  should  be  observed  that 
this  method  of  procedure  is  only  followed  when  a  better  defi- 
nition of  the  red  design  is  required  than  could  be  attained  by 
leaving  a  blank  figure  in  the  roller  for  the  iron  liquor,  and 
afterwards  printing  the  red  liquor  on  the  white  parts  either  by 
a  second  roller  or  by  the  block.  To  resist  weak  iron  liquor 
and  impart  the  mordant  for  a  full  red  with  madder,  the  mix- 
ture may  have  the  following  composition  : — 

1  gallon  of  red  liquor  of  18°  Twad., 

4  oz.  crystals  of  protochloride  of  tin ;  with  a  sufficient  quantity  of  British  gum 
or  a  mixture  of  the  gum  and  starch  as  the  thickener. 

To  obtain  a  design  in  full  red  and  black  on  a  lilac  ground, 
print  with  a  strong  iron  liquor  for  the  black,  with  the  above 
mixture  for  the  red,  and  with  iron  liquor  of  1°  Twad.  for  the 
lilac ;  after  which  the  goods  are  aged,  dunged,  dyed,  &c.  in 
the  usual  manner.  A  great  variety  of  pleasing  effects  may 
be  produced  by  combining  this  kind  of  work  with  steam  or 
topical  colors,  the  iron  liquor  not  being  applied  as  a  ground, 
but  as  a  design  extending  on  each  side  of  the  red  figure,  and 
on  the  parts  left  white  the  steam  colors  are  applied,  after 
dyeing  with  madder  and  clearing. 

Another  material,  much  used  as  a  resist  for  red  liquor  and 
iron  liquor,  is  a  solution  of  citrate  of  soda,  prepared  by  neu- 
tralizing lime-juice  of  about  4°  Twad.  with  soda,  thickened 
with  a  mixture  of  gum  and  pipe-clay.  The  action  of  this 
resist  may  probably  be  referred  to  the  tendency  of  citric  acid, 
like  oxalic  acid  and  a  few  others,  to  form  a  double  salt  with 
peroxide  of  iron  or  alumina  and  an  alkali,  which  affords  no 
precipitate  of  alumina  or  oxide  of  iron  during  the  ageing.  In 
this  case  a  portion  of  the  alkali  in  the  neutral  citrate  is  with- 
drawn by  the  acetic  acid  in  the  mordant,  an  acid  citrate  of 
soda  being  thus  formed.  Neutralized  lime-juice  of  4°  Tw., 
has  about  the  same  resisting  power  as  the  unneutralized  juice 
of  2°  Tw. 

The  principal  use  of  neutralized  lime-juice  as  a  resist  for 
iron  liquor  is  to  protect  figures  previously  applied  in  madder 
colors ;  for  which  purpose  the  free  acid  is  quite  inapplicable, 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


553 


as  it  would  dissolve  the  mordant  on  the  cloth  in  combination 
with  the  coloring  matter. 

3.  Resists  for  the  coloring  matter. — The  production  of  a 
white  or  colored  pattern  on  a  colored  ground  by  the  direct  ac- 
tion of  a  resist  on  a  coloring  matter,  is  chiefly  practised  with 
indigo,  at  least  in  the  printing  of  calicos.  The  substances 
most  commonly  employed  for  this  purpose  are  salts  of  the 
black  oxide  of  copper,  particularly  the  sulphate  and  the  ace- 
tate.   Sulphate  of  zinc  is  also  extensively  used. 

The  ordinary  course  of  operations  practised  in  this  style  of 
work,  with  the  view  of  producing  merely  a  white  pattern,  are 
the  following  : — 

The  resist,  mixed  with  unctuous  matters  and  properly  thickened,  is  first  printed 
on  such  parts  of  the  cloth  as  should  not  absorb  the  indigo ;  the  goods  are  then 
suspended  for  one  or  two  days  (according  to  the  composition  of  the  resist)  in  a 
chamber  at  common  temperatures,  and  not  very  dry.  The  pieces  are  then  framed 
and  dipped  into  the  indigo  vat.  The  solution  is  immediately  absorbed  on  all  parts 
where  the  resist  had  not  been  printed,  which  parts  become  deep  blue  when  the 
cloth  is  afterwards  exposed  to  the  air,  the  soluble  indigotin  passing  into  the  state 
of  insoluble  indigo-blue  through  the  absorption  of  oxygen.* 

A  white  pattern  on  a  blue  ground  may  be  produced  by  the 
blue  vat,  by  mixing  100  pounds  of  ground  indigo,  135  pounds 
of  copperas,  175  pounds  of  lime,  and  from  1,600  to  2,000  gal- 
lons of  water.  The  vat  is  fit  for  use  two  days  after  the  ma- 
terials are  mixed.  For  a  deep  blue,  the  cloth  is  dipped  into 
the  vat  for  ten  minutes  and  then  exposed  to  the  air  for  the 
same  length  of  time  ;  the  dipping  and  exposure  to  the  air  are 
repeated  until  the  required  shade  is  obtained. 

The  composition  of  the  resist  paste  is  varied  according  to 
the  depth  of  color  in  the  blue  ground.  The  following  mix- 
ture is  well  adapted  for  dark  blue  : — 

No.  1. 

3  to  4  pounds  of  sulphate  of  copper, 
7  pints  of  water, 

5  pounds  of  pipe-clay,  china-clay,  or  sulphate  of  lead, 

4  ounces  of  soft  soap, 
3  pounds  of  gum. 

For  a  resist  paste  for  light  blue,  the  proportion  of  sulphate 

*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III. 

70 


554 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


of  copper  may  be  reduced  to  eight  ounces  in  a  gallon  of  the 
paste.    This  resist  we  may  call  No.  2. 

The  sulphate  of  zinc  resist,  for  protecting  a  design  in  mad- 
der colors  as  well  as  for  preserving  some  white,  may  have  the 
following  composition : — 

No.  3. 

4  to  5  pounds  of  sulphate  of  zinc, 
2  quarts  of  boiling  water, 
5 \  pounds  of  pipe-clay, 
4  ounces  of  soft  soap, 
2  ounces  of  hogs'-lard, 

2  quarts  of  gum-senegai  water,  containing  6  pounds  of  gum  to  a  gallon  of  water. 

The  sulphate  of  zinc  is  first  dissolved  in  the  hot  water,  and 
with  this  solution,  while  warm,  the  pipe-clay,  soap,  and  lard, 
are  thoroughly  incorporated.  When  the  mixture  is  cold  the 
gum-water  is  added. 

Such  are  the  methods  of  obtaining  a  white  figure  on  a  blue 
ground  by  the  resist  style.  To  procure  a  design  in  white  and 
light-blue  on  a  dark  blue  ground,  the  cloth  is  first  printed  with 
the  resist  (No.  1)  dipped  in  the  blue-vat  and  cleaned,  as  if  a 
white  design  only  is  required.  After  being  dried,  it  is  printed 
with  the  weaker  resist  containing  sulphate  of  copper  (No.  2), 
again  dipped  in  the  blue-vat  to  a  lighter  shade,  cleared  in 
dilute  sulphuric  acid,  and  dried. 

A  great  variety  of  colored  designs  on  the  same  ground  may 
also  be  obtained  by  combining  with  the  resist,  either  one  of 
the  saline  solutions  capable  of  imparting  a  mineral  color,  or 
the  mordant  for  a  coloring  matter  to  be  applied  by  the  madder 
style. 

A  design  composed  of  yellow  figures  on  an  indigo  ground, 
is  very  commonly  and  easily  obtained  by  combining  the  resist 
with  a  salt  of  lead,  and  padding  or  wincing  the  cloth  in  a 
solution  of  bichromate  of  potash  after  being  dipped  into  the 
indigo-vat  and  cleared.  The  successive  operations  to  which 
a  piece  of  calico  is  subjected  in  this  kind  of  work  are  the  fol- 
lowing : — 

1.  Printing  with  the  mixture  of  resist  and  salt  of  lead, 
which  may  have  the  following  composition : — 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


555 


1  gallon  of  water, 

3  to  4  pounds  of  sulphate  of  copper, 
1  pound  of  nitrate  of  lead, 

1  pound  of  acetate  of  lead, 

3  pints  of  a  paste  of  precipitated  sulphate  of  lead, 
5  or  6  pounds  of  pipe-clay, 

2  to  3  pounds  of  gum. 

2.  Hanging  for  one  or  two  days  in  a  room  having  a  rather 
humid  atmosphere ; 

3.  Dipping  into  the  indigo-vat ; 

4.  Passing  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid  ; 

5.  Steeping  in  water  for  half  an  hour,  and  washing ; 

6.  Wincing  in  a  dilute  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda  ; 

7.  Wincing  in  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash,  contain- 
ing five  ounces  of  the  bichromate  per  piece  of  calico  ; 

8.  Wincing  in  dilute  muriatic  acid  ; 

9.  Washing  in  water. 

To  obtain  a  figure  of  chrome-orange  instead  of  chrome- 
yellow,  the  calico  may  be  first  treated  as  above,  and  after- 
wards winced  in  hot  milk  of  lime  to  convert  the  chrome-yel- 
low into  chrome-orange. 

To  procure  a  design  in  yellow  and  light  blue  on  a  dark 
blue  ground,  the  cloth  is  submitted  to  the  following  opera- 
tions : — 

1.  It  is  first  printed  with  the  mixture  of  sulphate  of  copper  and  salts  of  lead  for 
chrome-yellow,  and  on  the  parts  to  be  light  blue  with  a  mixture  of  sulphate  and 
acetate  of  copper,  formed  by  mixing  solutions  of  acetate  of  lead  and  sulphate  of 
copper,  allowing  the  mixture  to  settle  and  decanting  the  supernatant  liquid  ; 

2.  After  being  dried,  the  cloth  is  dipped  in  the  blue-vat  for  the  dark  ground ; 

3.  It  is  next  passed  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid  to  clear  the  whites  of  the  sub- 
oxide of  copper,  and  washed  in  water ; 

4.  After  being  winced  in  a  mixed  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda  and  carbonate 
of  ammonia,  it  is  dipped  a  second  time  into  the  blue-vat  for  the  light  blue  of  the 
figure,  and  then  washed  in  water ; 

5.  It  is  afterwards  winced  in  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash,  and  then 
drawn  through  a  cistern  containing  a  solution  of  one  ounce  of  oxalic  acid  and  as 
much  sulphuric  acid  to  the  gallon  of  water. 

A  pattern  comprising  a  figure  of  iron  buff  on  an  indigo 
ground,  may  be  applied  to  cloth  by  a  similar  combination  of 
the  padding  and  resist  styles,  the  resist  (No.  1)  being  mixed 
with  a  salt  of  the  peroxide  of  iron.    After  the  indigo  ground 


556 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


is  applied,  the  cloth  is  slightly  washed,  and  then  winced  in  a 
warm  dilute  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda  to  precipitate  hy 
drated  oxide  of  iron.  A  buff  figure  on  a  dark  green  ground 
is  sometimes  produced  by  first  printing  the  cloth  with  the 
white  resist,  then  dipping  into  the  blue  vat,  and  after  the  cloth 
is  cleared  and  dried,  padding  it  with  buff  liquor,  and  raising 
the  buff  by  carbonate  of  soda. 

Another  method  of  producing  a  colored  figure  on  the  indi- 
go ground,  is  by  combining  with  the  resist  paste  a  mordant 
for  a  vegetable  coloring  matter,  to  be  applied  by  the  madder 
style,  after  the  cloth  has  been  dipped  into  the  indigo  vat. 
This  kind  of  work,  which  is  susceptible  of  a  great  variety  of 
modifications,  is  distinguished  as  the  LAZULITE  STYLE, 
from  the  resemblance  of  the  calico  thus  printed  and  dyed  to 
the  mineral  lapis  lazuli.  It  is  also  known  as  the  NEU- 
TRAL STYLE. 

To  obtain  a  red  figure  on  the  indigo  ground,  the  cloth  is 
printed  with  a  resist  paste  composed,  essentially,  of  red  liquor, 
sulphate  of  zinc,  and  acetate  of  copper. 

This  resist  may  be  made  of  the  following  materials,  mixed 
in  the  order  in  which  they  are  placed : — 

No.  l. 

2  gallons  of  boiling  water, 
6  pounds  of  alum, 

4  pounds  of  crude  acetate  of  lead, 

4  ounces  of  chalk,  added  in  small  quantities  at  a  time,  and 
6  ounces  of  sulphate  of  zinc. 

Chese  materials  having  been  thoroughly  incorporated,  the 
mixture  is  allowed  to  settle,  and  the  clear  supernatant  liquid 
decanted  and  mixed  with  acetate  of  copper  and  gum  Senegal, 
thus  : 

No.  2. 

1  gallon  of  the  above  clear  liquid, 

3  ounces  of  acetate  of  copper, 
18  ounces  of  gum  Senegal, 

5  pounds  of  pipe-clay, 

4  ounces  of  soft  soap,  and  a  little  ground  indigo  for  "  sightening." 

One  half  of  the  liquid  is  well  mixed  with  the  acetate  of  cop- 
per, pipe-clay,  and  soap,  and  the  gum  Senegal  is  afterward 
added,  dissolved  in  the  other  half. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


557 


After  being  printed  with  this  resist,  the  cloth  is  aged  for 
two  or  three  days,  and  then  subjected  to  the  following  opera- 
tions : — 

1.  Drawing  by  rollers  once  through  the  blue  vat  at  70°  Fahr.  ■ 

2.  Rinsing  in  water ; 

3.  Dunging  or  branning; 

4.  Washing  at  the  dash-wheel ; 

5.  Dyeing  in  the  madder  bath,  with  from  two  to  five  pounds  of  madder  per  piece; 
C.  Clearing  by  boiling  first  in  bran  water  and  afterwards  in  soap  water. 

To  produce  a  light  red  figure  with  madder,  the  resist  may 
have  the  following  composition  : — 

4  measures  of  the  sulphate  of  zinc  resist  paste  No.  3,  page  554. 

1  measure  of  the  mixture  of  red  liquor  and  sulphate  of  zinc  made  as  above. 

1  measure  of  weak  peachwood  liquor. 

1  measure  of  water. 

For  two  reds  the  cloth  may  be  printed  with  the  preceding  mixtures  at  the  same 
time  by  the  two-color  machine,  and  be  treated  afterwards  in  the  manner  just  de- 
scribed. 

To  obtain  merely  a  small  black  figure  on  the  indigo  ground, 
the  cloth  may  be  dipped  in  the  blue  vat  to  the  required  shade, 
and  then  printed  with  the  mixture  for  producing  a  topical 
black  dye,  such  as  pernitrate  of  iron,  copperas,  and  extract  of 
logwood.  But  if  the  design  includes  figures  in  red  and  white, 
the  black  forming  a  more  considerable  portion  of  the  figure 
than  a  mere  outline,  it  is  better  to  mix  iron  liquor  of  8°  or  10° 
Tw.  with  the  resist  (No.  1,  p.  553),  and  to  dye  the  cloth  in  the 
madder  bath,  after  having  dipped  it  in  the  blue  vat  to  the 
proper  shade. 

A  great  variety  of  purple,  lilac,  and  chocolate  tints  may 
also  be  obtained  on  the  same  ground,  by  combining  with  the 
cupreous  resist,  either  weak  iron  liquor  or  mixtures  in  various 
proportions  of  iron  liquor  with  red  liquor,  and  dyeing  in  mad- 
der after  the  dipping  in  the  blue  vat. 

To  impart  to  a  blue  ground  a  design  in  light  blue,  together 
with  a  color  capable  of  being  applied  by  the  madder  style,  the 
cloth  may  be  treated  as  follows : — 

t.  Print  with  the  white  resist,  No.  1,  p.  553. 

2.  Dip  in  the  blue  vat,  wash,  wince  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  rinse  in  water  and 
dry; 


558  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

3.  Print  the  mixture  of  the  mordant  with  the  resist  (No.  1,  p.  553)  on  a  part  of 
the  white  figure  produced  by  the  first  resist ; 

4.  Dip  a  second  time  in  the  blue-vat,  to  obtain  a  light  blue  on  the  parts  not  pro- 
tected by  the  last  resist,  rinse  in  water ; 

5.  Dung,  wash,  and  dye,  and  afterwards  clear  by  branning. 

If  a  white  figure  is  required  in  addition  to  the  above,  the 
cloth  is  first  printed  with  the  strong  white  resist,  dipped  into 
the  blue  vat  as  already  described,  and  afterwards  printed  on 
the  protected  parts,  by  the  two-color  machine,  if  the  design 
admits,  with  the  mixture  of  mordant  and  salt  of  copper,  and 
also  with  a  mild  resist  such  as  No.  2,  p.  554.  It  is  then  dip- 
ped in  the  blue  vat  and  dyed  in  the  usual  manner. 

To  procure  a  pattern  containing  a  design  in  orange,  crim- 
son, and  white  on  a  blue  ground,  the  cloth  is  printed  by  the 
two-color  machine  with  the  mixture  of  salts  of  copper  and 
salts  of  lead  (page  553),  on  the  parts  to  be  orange,  and  with  a 
white  resist  on  the  parts  to  be  crimson  and  white.  After 
being  dipped  in  the  blue  vat  and  cleared  in  dilute  sulphuric 
acid,  it  is  winced  in  the  following  liquids  : — 

1.  Solution  of  carbonate  of  soda.  2.  Solution  of  bichromate  of  potash.  3.  Di- 
lute muriatic  acid.  It  is  next  passed  through  hot  milk  of  lime  to  convert  the 
chrome-yellow  into  chrome-orange,  rinsed  and  dried,  and  is  afterwards  printed  by 
the  block  on  parts  of  the  white  with  the  mixture  for  a  topical  or  steam  red  or 
crimson. 

A  pattern  in  blue,  yellow,  green,  red,  and  white  on  a  dark 
chocolate  ground,  may  be  produced  by  combining  the  lazu- 
lite  style  with  a  topical  color.  This  kind  of  work  is  distin- 
guished as  the  "CHOCOLATE  GROUND  NEUTRAL 
STYLE."  For  such  a  pattern  the  cloth  is  first  printed 
(either  by  the  machine  or  by  the  block)  with  the  white  resist,* 
No.  1,  page  553,  on  all  the  parts  required  to  be  yellow  and 
white,  with  the  mixture  of  red  liquor,  sulphate  of  zinc,  and 
acetate  of  copper,  on  the  parts  required  to  be  red ;  and  with  a 
mixture  of  iron  liquor,  red  liquor,  sulphate  of  copper,  and  soft 
soap  thickened  with  pipe-clay  and  gum,  for  the  chocolate 

*  If  a  very  small  or  well-defined  white  figure  is  required,  the  resist  (No.  1,  p. 
553)  should  be  mixed  with  lime-juice  and  sulphuric  acid  or  bisulphate  of  potash,  to 
resist  the  mordant  in  the  chocolate  resist,  afterwards  applied  as  a  blotch.  Such  a 
mixture  is  designated  (not  very  appropriately)  neutral  paste. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


559 


ground  or  "  blotch."  After  having  been  aged  for  a  day  or 
two  the  cloth  is  drawn  once  through  the  indigo-vat,  then 
washed,  dunged,  dyed  in  the  madder  bath,  and  cleared  by 
branning.  Lastly,  the  mixture  for  a  topical  or  steam  yellow 
is  applied  by  the  block. 

A  process  referable  to  the  resist  style  is  that  by  which  a 
white  figure  is  obtained  on  a  ground  of  catechue  brown.  On 
the  parts  to  be  preserved  white,  the  cloth  is  printed  with  a 
solution  of  citrate  of  soda  (such  as  that  obtained  by  exactly 
neutralizing  lime-juice  with  caustic  soda)  thickened  with  a 
mixture  of  pipe-clay  and  gum ;  or,  what  is  preferred,  a  mix- 
ture of  sulphate  of  zinc,  pipe-clay,  and  gum.  Such  a  resist 
may  be  printed  on  the  cloth  by  one  roller  of  a  two  or  three 
color  machine,  and  the  catechue  mixture  by  another  roller, 
or  if  required,  two  or  three  shades  of  the  brown  may  be  ap- 
plied by  as  many  rollers.  The  action  of  both  of  these  resist 
pastes  is  chiefly  mechanical ;  but  the  sulphate  of  zinc  also 
acts  by  precipitating  the  catechue  in  solution,  and  thus  pre- 
venting its  access  to  the  fibre  of  the  cloth.* 


*  The  same  resist  may  be  employed  for  preventing  the  deposition  of  catechue 
on  a  colored  design  previously  applied  in  madder  colors. 


CHAPTER  VI, 


CALICO-PRINTING  PROCESSES. 

THE  DISCHARGE-STYLE,  CHINA-BLUE  STYLE,  STEAM  COLORS,  ETC. 

IV.  THE  DISCHARGE  STYLE.— The  manner  of  pro- 
ducing a  white  or  colored  pattern,  on  a  colored  ground,  by 
the  topical  application  of  a  "  discharger"  to  a  cloth  already 
mordanted  or  dyed,  is  applicable  to  both  mineral  and  vege- 
table coloring  matters.  Like  the  resist  paste,  the  discharger 
may  act  either  on  the  coloring  matter  itself,  or  on  the  mor- 
dant before  the  cloth  is  exposed  to  a  dyeing  liquid.  Dis- 
chargers for  mordants,  are  generally  acid  mixtures  quite 
similar  to  resists  for  mordants,  but  dischargers  for  coloring 
materials  are  obtained  from  different  classes  of  chemical 
substances,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  coloring  matter  to 
be  removed.  The  essential  property  required  in  a  discharger, 
is  that  of  converting  the  substances  on  the  cloth  into  color- 
less or  soluble  products,  which  may  be  removed  from  the 
cloth  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  subsequent  application 
of  a  coloring  material  to  the  parts  discharged. 

1.  Discharges  for  coloring  matters. — The  materials  used 
as  discharges  for  vegetable  coloring  principles,  are  chlorine 
and  chromic  acid,  the  bleaching  powers  of  which  have  before 
been  alluded  to.*  To  effect  the  topical  discharge  of  a  vege- 
table coloring  matter  by  means  of  chlorine,  with  the  produc- 
tion of  a  white  figure,  the  dyed  cloth  is  printed  on  those 
parts  which  are  to  be  discharged,  with  a  thickened  acid  mix- 
ture, the  composition  of  which  is  varied  according  to  the 
fastness  of  the  color  to  be  destroyed  ;  and  after  being  sus- 


*  See  chapter  I.,  Part  II. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


561 


pended  to  dry  for  a  day  or  two,  the  cloth  is  drawn  (by  a  pair 
of  squeezing  rollers)  through  a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime, 
not  stronger  than  8°  Tw.  or  1*040.  The  goods  should  be 
extended  on  rollers  while  being  drawn  through  the  solution, 
and  should  not  occupy  more  than  two  or  three  minutes  in 
their  passage.  As  soon  as  the  goods  have  passed  through, 
they  are  put  to  soak  in  water  ;  after  which  they  are  washed 
either  by  the  dash-wheel  or  the  rinsing  machine,  and  then 
dried. 

The  chemical  reactions  which  take  place  in  this  process, 
are  by  no  means  complicated.  Chloride  of  lime  does  not  of 
itself  bleach  Turkey-red  and  some  other  fast  colors  imme- 
diately ;  so  that  a  cloth  dyed  with  such  colors  may  remain 
for  some  minutes  in  contact  with  a  solution  of  chloride  of 
lime  without  any  deterioration  in  color.  But  the  acid  applied 
to  certain  parts  of  the  cloth,  combines  with  the  base  of  the 
chloride  and  liberates  free  chlorine,  which  exerts  an  instanta- 
neous bleaching  action  on  the  vegetable  coloring  matter  on 
those  parts  of  the  cloth.  Almost  the  only  colors  to  which 
chlorine  can  be  thus  applied  as  a  discharger,  are  Turkey-red 
and  other  madder  colors  and  indigo,  as  the  more  delicate  col- 
ors are  easily  discharged  by  chloride  of  lime  alone. 

A  white  discharger,  adapted  for  all  madder  colors  except 
Turkey-red,  may  be  made  by  dissolvi?ig  4  pounds  of  tar- 
taric acid  in  a  gallon  of  water,  mixing  this  solution  with  a 
gallon  of  lime-juice,  of  spec.  grav.  44°  or  48°  Twad.,  and 
thickening  the  mixture  with  pipe-clay  and  gum. 

The  white  discharger  for  Turkey-red,  requires  to  be  rather 
stronger  than  the  above.  It  may  be  made  by  mixing  4 
pounds  of  tartaric  acid  with  a  gallon  of  lime-juice,  at  about 
30°  Twad.  and  after  thickening  with  pipe-clay  and  gum, 
adding  about  a  pound  of  concentrated  sulphuric  acid,  or 
two  pounds  of  bisulphate  of  potash. 

In  a  particular  style  of  work,  the  Turkey-red  is  discharged 
by  the  direct  topical  application  of  chlorine,  or  rather  of  an 
aqueous  solution  of  chlorine.  It  is  in  this  way  that  the  cele- 
brated Bandana  handkerchiefs,  which  have  white  figures  on 
a  dark  ground,  have  been  most  successfully  imitated  by 

71 


562 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Messrs.  Monteith  of  Glasgow.  The  style  is  only  practised 
in  the  manufacture  of  handkerchiefs.  The  process  is  as 
follows  : — 

From  ten  to  fourteen  pieces  of  cloth,  previously  dyed  Turkey-red,  are  stretchea 
over  each  other  quite  parallel,  and  passed  together  by  portions  at  a  time  (proceed- 
ing from  one  end  of  the  pieces  to  the  other  end),  between  two  leaden  plates,  one 
of  which  is  placed  immediately  over  the  other.  Each  of  these  leaden  plates  is  cut 
completely  through,  so  as  to  leave  hollowT  places  on  all  the  parts  required  in  white 
on  the  red  ground.  By  means  of  a  hydraulic  press,  the  pieces  of  cloth  are  com- 
pressed between  the  leaden  plates  with  a  force  of  three  hundred  and  twenty  tons 
on  the  whole  surface.  While  the  cloth  is  exposed  to  this  immense  pressure,  an 
aqueous  solution  of  chlorine  (obtained  by  adding  sulphuric  acid  to  a  solution  of 
chloride  of  lime),  is  made  to  percolate  downward  through  the  pieces  by  the  open- 
ings in  the  leaden  plates.  As  the  compressed  state  of  the  cloth  prevents  the  imbi- 
bition of  the  liquid  except  by  the  parts  opposed  to  the  design  on  the  lead,  the  solu- 
tion passes  on  in  a  circumscribed  channel  to  the  lower  leaden  plate,  where  it  es- 
capes and  is  conveyed  away  by  a  waste-pipe.  The  portions  of  cloth  through 
which  the  liquid  passes,  are  entirely  deprived  of  their  color.  As  soon  as  the  chlo- 
rine solution  is  passed  through,  water  is  made  to  percolate  in  a  similar  manner  to 
wash  away  the  chlorine,  else  the  definition  of  the  pattern  would  be  impaired.  The 
passage  through  the  cloth  of  the  chlorine  solution  and  the  water  for  washing,  is 
sometimes  assisted  by  a  pneumatic  apparatus  consisting  of  a  large  gasometer,  from 
which  a  current  of  air  is  caused  to  proceed  under  a  moderate  pressure,  and  act  in 
the  direction  of  the  liquid. 

When  a  considerable  quantity  of  water  has  passed  through 
the  cloths,  the  pressure  is  removed,  and  the  pieces  are  washed 
and  slightly  bleached,  whereby  the  lustre,  both  of  the  design 
and  ground,  is  considerably  increased.  After  the  production 
of  a  white  figure  on  a  colored  ground,  by  the  application  of 
the  acid  discharger  and  immersion  in  the  solution  of  chloride 
of  lime,  colored  figures  may  be  applied,  either  to  the  ground 
or  to  the  white  figure,  by  grounding  in  topical  colors  by  the 
hand-block.  A  common  method  of  imparting  a  colored  figure, 
is  by  mixing  with  the  acid  discharger  one  of  the  two  solutions 
necessary  for  producing  a  mineral  coloring  material.  For  ex- 
ample, to  impart  a  yellow  figure  to  a  piece  of  cotton  dyed 
with  Turkey-red,  proceed  as  follows  : — 

1.  Print  by  the  machine  with  a  chrome  yellow  discharger, 
composed  of 

1  gallon  of  lime-juice  of  spec.  grav.  20°  Twad., 
5  pounds  of  tartaric  acid, 

4  pounds  of  nitrate  of  lead,  with  a  mixture  of  pipc-clay  and  gum  as  the  thickener. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


563 


2.  After  hanging  for  a  day  or  two,  pass  the  piece  through 
a  solution  of  chloride  of  lime  at  8°  Twad. 

3.  Soak  in  water  and  slightly  wince  in  water. 

4.  Wince  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  in  a  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash,  containing  from  three  to  five  pounds  to 
the  piece. 

5.  Pass  through,  or  wince,  in  dilute  muriatic  acid,  wash  at 
the  dash-wheel  and  dry. 

To  obtain  both  a  white  and  a  yellow  figure  on  a  Turkey- 
red  ground,  the  dyed  cloth  may  be  printed  with  two  acid  dis- 
chargers, one  intended  for  the  production  of  the  white,  the 
other  for  the  yellow  figure.  The  subsequent  treatment  of  the 
cloth  is  the  same  as  above. 

To  impart  a  blue  figure  to  the  same  ground,  the  dyed  cloth 
is  printed  with  a  mixture  of  Prussian-blue,  permuriate  of  tin, 
and  tartaric  acid,  after  which  it  is  drawn  through  a  solution 
of  chloride  of  lime.  The  Turkey-red  thereby  becomes  dis- 
charged, and  the  Prussian-blue  fixed  on  all  the  parts  where 
the  mixture  had  been  printed. 

The  only  substance  besides  chlorine,  which  can  be  conve- 
niently employed  to  effect  the  topical  destruction  or  removal 
of  vegetable  coloring  matters,  is  chromic  acid,  which  produces 
the  decomposition  of  the  coloring  matter,  by  virtue  of  its  oxi- 
dizing power,  the  chromic  acid  becoming  reduced  to  the  state 
of  green  oxide  of  chromium.  The  vegetable  coloring  princi- 
ple best  adapted  to  this  kind  of  work  is  indigo. 

To  obtain  a  white  pattern  on  an  indigo  ground,  by  means 
of  chromic  acid,  the  cloth  is  first  dyed  uniformly  with  indigo, 
in  the  ordinary  manner,  and  then  padded  with  a  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash,  containing  about  five  or  six  ounces  per 
piece.  After  being  carefully  dried  in  the  shade  at  the  ordi- 
nary temperature,  it  is  next  printed  with  a  discharger  contain- 
ing tartaric  acid,  oxalic  acid,  citric  acid,  and  sometimes  mu- 
riatic acid ;  and  immediately  after  the  impression,  it  is  winced 
in  water  containing  a  little  chalk  in  suspension,  then  washed 
by  the  dash-wheel,  passed  through  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  and 
lastly  washed  in  clean  water. 

The  color  of  the  indigo  on  the  cloth,  is  destroyed  imme- 


564  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


diately  on  the  application  of  the  acid  discharger :  chromic 
acid  is  then  liberated  from  the  bichromate,  through  the  supe- 
rior affinity  of  the  acids  in  the  paste  for  the  potash,  and  the 
free  chromic  acid  at  once  oxidizes  and  destroys  the  coloring 
matter.  Indigo  is  almost  the  only  substance  which  can  be 
adapted  to  the  chromic  acid  discharger,  owing  to  the  oxidi- 
zing action  which  the  bichromate  of  itself  exerts  on  vegetable 
coloring  materials  in  general ;  hence  the  reason  also  for  dry- 
ing the  dyed  goods,  after  being  padded  with  the  bichro- 
mate, in  a  darkened  chamber  and  at  the  ordinary  tempera- 
ture. 

To  produce  a  yellow  instead  of  a  white  figure,  the  acid 
discharger  may  be  mixed  with  a  salt  of  lead ;  in  other  re- 
spects the  process  is  the  same  as  above. 

The  following  method  of  obtaining  a  white  figure  on  a 
dark  green  ground,  is  an  example  of  the  combination  of  the 
madder  style  of  work,  with  the  chromic  acid  discharge 
style  : — 

1 .  Dip  the  cloth  in  the  blue-vat  to  the  desired  shade ; 

2.  Pad  in  a  mixture  of  red  liquor,  with  bichromate  of  potash,  containing  five 
or  six  ounces  of  the  latter  to  the  gallon,  and  dry  in  the  shade ; 

3.  Print  the  cloth,  without  being  washed,  with  a  mixture  of  lime-juice,  sul- 
phuric acid,  and  oxalic  acid ; 

4.  Pass  the  cloth  through  a  mixture  of  hot  water  and  chalk,  and  dye  in  a  de- 
coction of  quercitron  bark ; 

5.  Wash  and  clear  by  branning. 

In  this  process,  the  mixture  of  lime-juice,  sulphuric  acid, 
and  oxalic  acid,  not  only  liberates  chromic  acid  from  the 
bichromate  of  potash,  but  also  dissolves  the  subsulphate  of 
alumina  deposited  from  the  red  liquor ;  the  parts  on  which 
this  mixture  is  applied,  do  not,  therefore,  become  permanently 
dyed  yellow  when  the  cloth  is  exposed  to  the  decoction  of 
quercitron. 

The  discharge  style  is  applicable  to  cloths  dyed  with  mine- 
ral, as  well  as  with  vegetable  and  animal  coloring  matters. 

1.  A  white  figure  may  be  produced  on  a  ground  of  Prus- 
sian blue,  by  imprinting  on  the  cloth  a  paste  containing  a 
caustic  alkali  (either  potash  or  soda),  and  passing  the  cloth 
afterwards  through  a  solution  of  oxalic  acid.    The  Prussian 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


565 


blue  is  here  decomposed  by  the  action  of  the  alkali,  affording 
yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  or  prussiate  of  soda,  which  may 
be  removed  by  washing,  and  peroxide  of  iron,  which  is  pre- 
cipitated on  the  cloth,  but  is  afterwards  dissolved  out  by  the 
oxalic  acid. 

2.  A  white  figure,  on  a  ground  of  manganese  brown, 
may  be  very  readily  obtained  by  imprinting  the  cloth,  after 
being  dyed  brown  in  the  ordinary  manner,  with  a  slightly 
acid  solution  of  protochloride  of  tin,  of  a  specific  gravity 
about  70°  or  80°  Twad.,  or  containing  a  pound  and  a  half 
or  two  pounds  of  the  protochloride  per  gallon,  according  to 
the  intensity  of  the  shade  of  the  manganese  ground.  The 
solution  of  protochloride  of  tin  is  thickened  with  about  a 
pound  of  starch  to  the  gallon.  The  peroxide  of  manganese 
on  the  cloth  is  decomposed  by  the  protochloride  of  tin,  and 
converted  into  protochloride  of  manganese,  which  being  a 
very  soluble  salt  is  easily  dissolved  out  by  washing,  leaving 
the  parts  white,  or  nearly  so,  on  which  the  salt  of  tin  had 
been  applied.  Peroxide  of  tin  is  formed  at  the  same  time, 
and  remains  for  the  most  part  attached  to  the  cloth,  but 
being  white,  it  does  not  vitiate  the  pattern. 

To  impart  a  design  in  white,  blue,  and  yellow,  on  the 
bronze  ground,  the  cloth  on  which  the  manganese  has  been 
raised,  may  be  printed  with  the  salts  of  tin  for  the  white ; 
with  a  mixture  of  berry  liquor,  alum,  and  salts  of  tin  for  the 
yellow ;  and  with  a  mixture  of  salts  of  tin,  prussiate  of  pot- 
ash, pernitrate  of  iron,  muriatic  acid,  and  British  gum,  for 
the  blue  spots.  The  color  of  the  latter  mixture  is  at  first 
greenish-white,  but  changes  to  blue  on  exposure  to  the  air. 

A  design  in  different  shades  of  red  and  pink,  may  be  com- 
municated to  the  same  ground,  by  means  of  a  mixture  of 
peachwood  or  cochineal  liquor  with  alum,  perchloride,  and 
protochloride  of  tin,  thickened  with  gum  tragacanth ;  and  a 
mixture  of  logwood  liquor,  with  alum  and  the  two  chlorides 
of  tin,  thickened  with  starch,  may  be  used  for  imparting 
different  shades  of  purple  and  violet  to  the  same  ground. 

A  figure  in  chrome-yellow,  may  be  produced  on  a  ground  of 
manganese  bronze,  by  printing  on  the  dyed  cloth  a  discharg- 


566 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


ing  material  composed  of  tartaric  acid,  nitrate  of  lead,  and 
salts  of  tin.  After  the  cloth  is  dried,  it  is  passed  first  through 
lime-water,  then  through  a  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash, 
and  afterwards  through  dilute  muriatic  acid  to  brighten  the 
yellow. 

3.  Protochloride  of  tin,  when  mixed  with  sulphuric,  tar- 
taric, or  oxalic  acid,  is  also  used  as  the  discharging  material 
for  chrome-yellow  and  chrome-orange.  The  discharge  of 
the  chromates  of  lead  is  effected,  in  this  case,  by  the  reduc- 
tion of  the  chromic  acid  to  the  state  of  green  oxide  of 
chromium,  ivhich  forms  soluble  salts  with  the  acids. 

A  variety  of  colored  designs  may  also  be  applied,  by  com- 
bining with  the  discharger,  the  materials  for  the  production 
of  a  topical  color.  Thus,  a  blue  figure  is  sometimes  pro- 
duced, by  printing  on  the  orange  or  yellow  cloth,  a  mixture 
of  the  two  chlorides  of  tin,  Prussian  blue,  and  muriatic  acid ; 
a  violet  figure,  by  logwood  liquor  mixed  with  alum,  tartaric 
acid,  protochloride  of  tin  and  starch ;  and  a  red  or  pink 
figure,  by  a  similar  mixture,  containing  peachwood  liquor 
instead  of  logwood  liquor. 

4.  A  white  figure  on  a  ground  of  iron  buff,  is  obtained, 
by  applying  to  the  colored  cloth  a  mixture  of  tartaric  and 
oxalic  acids  with  lime-juice,  thickened  with  pipe-clay,  or 
China-clay  and  gum.  The  acids  dissolve  the  peroxide  of 
iron,  and  the  figure  is  obtained  perfectly  white  by  washing. 
The  readiest  ivay  of  discharging  the  iron,  is  to  apply  the 
acid  mixture  after  the  cloth  has  been  padded  in  the  iron 
liquor,  and  before  it  is  exposed  to  the  alkaline  solution  to 
precipitate  the  peroxide.  A  solution  of  protochloride  of  tin 
in  a  dilute  acid,  thickened  with  starch,  is  also  sometimes  used 
as  a  wThite  discharger  for  iron  buff ;  and  for  producing  colored 
designs,  the  protochloride  may  be  mixed  with  perchloride  of 
tin  and  either  logwood,  peachwood,  or  berry  liquor. 

The  following  method  of  producing  white  and  buff-colored 
figures  on  a  dark-green  ground,  is  an  example  of  the  combi- 
nation of  such  a  process  as  the  above  with  the  resist  style  : — 

1.  The  cloth  is  printed  with  the  white  resist  for  the  indigo-vat ; 

2.  It  is  dipped  into  the  blue-vat,  rinsed,  and  dried  ; 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


567 


3.  It  is  padded  with  rather  weak  iron  liquor  and  aged ; 

4.  A  solution  of  tartaric  and  oxalic  acids  in  lime-juice,  thickened  with  pipe-clay 
and  gum,  is  applied  by  the  block  to  parts  of  the  buff  spots ; 

5.  The  cloth  is  washed  in  water  holding  chalk  in  suspension,  to  remove  the 
acid  paste ; 

6.  Wince  in  an  alkaline  solution,  to  raise  the  buff,  and  then  wash. 

The  white  figure  is  here  produced,  by  the  discharge  of  the 
salt  of  iron  from  parts  of  the  spots  on  which  the  indigo  had 
been  resisted ;  the  buff  figure  is  the  remainder  of  those  spots, 
and  the  dark  green  ground  results  from  the  mixture  of  the 
indigo  with  the  bufT. 

Dischargers  for  Mordants. — Another  method  of  producing 
white  or  colored  figures  on  a  colored  ground,  referable  to  the 
discharge  style  of  work,  is  by  the  removal  of  the  mordant 
previous  to  the  application  of  the  coloring  material.  This 
method  is  particularly  adapted  to  grounds  of  madder  and  log- 
wood, with  an  iron  or  aluminous  mordant.  The  materiaJ 
used  for  the  discharge  of  the  mordant,  is  usually  a  mixture 
of  tartaric  acid,  oxalic  acid,  and  lime-juice,  the  proportions  of 
the  constituents  being  varied  according  to  the  strength  of  the 
mordant  to  be  discharged.  The  following  mixture  may  be 
used  for  discharging  the  mordant  from  a  piece  of  cloth  im- 
pregnated with  red  liquor  of  spec.  grav.  7°  Twad.  or  weaker, 
or  with  iron  liquor  of  spec.  grav.  2°  Twad.,  or  weaker : — 

1  gallon  of  lime-juice  spec.  grav.  6°  Twad., 
3|  ounces  of  oxalic  acid,  and 
4  ounces  of  tartaric  acid, 

Thickened  with  pipe-clay  and  gum  if  for  application  by  the  block,  or  with  Brit- 
ish gum  if  by  the  roller. 

Sometimes  the  proportion  of  tartaric  and  oxalic  acids,  and 
the  strength  of  the  lime-juice,  are  considerably  reduced,  and 
bisulphate  of  potash,  oil  of  vitriol,  and  cream  of  tartar,  are  in- 
troduced instead. 

The  ordinary  operations  practised  on  calico,  in  this  style  of 
work,  to  obtain  a  white  figure,  are  the  following : — 

1.  The  cloth  is  padded  or  printed  with  the  solution  of  the  mordant  for  the 
ground,  and  is  immediately  dried  by  being  drawn  either  through  the  hot-flue  or 
over  steam  boxes ; 

2.  After  a  moderate  ageing,  the  calico,  without  being  washed,  is  imprinted  by 


568 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


the  roller  with  the  discharging  paste,  which  immediately  dissolves  the  subsalt 
formed  during  the  ageing ; 

3.  The  calico  is  next  suspended  for  a  day  or  two  in  a  cool  place,  not  very  dry, 
and,  if  the  mordant  is  peroxide  of  iron,  it  is  then  passed  through  water  heated  to 
about  130°  F.  and  rendered  slightly  alkaline  by  the  addition  of  a  small  quantity 
of  carbonate  of  soda  ;* 

4.  The  cloth  is  afterward  washed,  dunged,  and  dyed,  in  the  vegetable  infusion ; 
after  which  it  is  cleared  by  soaping  or  branning  and  wincing  in  solution  of  chlo- 
ride of  lime,  in  the  usual  manner.  Wherever  the  acid  paste  had  been  applied,  the 
coloring  material  does  not  attach  itself,  in  consequence  of  the  removal  of  the  mor- 
dant from  those  parts. 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  kind  of  discharge  work  is  very 
similar  to  the  resist  style,  in  which  an  acid  paste  is  first  im- 
printed on  the  cloth  to  prevent  the  attachment  of  a  mordant 
subsequently  applied  to  the  whole  surface  of  the  cloth  ;  the 
only  difference  between  the  two  styles  consisting  in  the  order 
of  applying  the  acid  and  the  mordant.  The  best  whites  are 
no  doubt  generally  procured  by  the  resist  style  j  as  it  is  easier 
for  an  acid  to  prevent  the  attachment  of  a  mordant  in  an  in- 
soluble form,  than  to  dissolve  it,  when  once  precipitated. 

To  procure  a  white  design  on  a  black  ground,  by  the  dis- 
charge of  the  mordant,  the  cloth  may  be  treated  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner : — 

1.  Pad  or  print  the  calico  with  a  mixture  of  equal  measures  of  iron  liquor,  of 
spec.  grav.  6°  Twad.,  and  red  liquor  of  8°  Twad.,  thickened  with  starch  or 
British  gum ; 

2.  Dry  over  the  steam  boxes,  age,  and  apply  a  discharger  composed  of  tartaric 
acid,  sulphuric  acid,  and  lime-juice,  thickened  with  British  gum ; 

3.  Pass  the  cloth  through  warm  water  mixed  with  chalk ; 

4.  Dye  in  decoction  of  logwood,  mixed  with  a  little  bran  and  dung ; 

5.  Wash,  clear  the  white  by  branning,  rinse  and  dry. 

The  following  method  of  producing  white  and  blue  figures 
on  a  purple  or  chocolate  ground,  presents  an  example  of  the 
combination  of  such  a  style  as  the  above  with  the  indigo  re- 
sist style  : — 

1.  The  white  calico  is  padded  with  red  liquor ; 


*  The  passing  of  the  cloth  through  a  dilute  solution  of  carbonate  of  soda  is 
sometimes  omitted,  particularly  when  alumina  is  the  mordant,  in  which  case  a 
quantity  of  chalk  is  added  to  the  dung-bath  to  neutralize  the  free  acid  in  the  dis- 
charger. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


569 


2.  After  the  cloth  has  been  aged  for  a  short  time,  the  thickened  acid  discharger 
is  applied  by  the  cylinder  to  all  the  parts  intended  to  be  blue  or  white ; 

3.  After  hanging  for  twenty- four  hours,  the  calico  is  dunged,  dyed  in  the  mad- 
der-bath, and  cleared  by  branning ; 

4.  On  the  parts  of  the  white  spots  which  are  intended  to  remain  white,  the  sul- 
phate of  zinc  resist  for  the  indigo  vat,  such  as  the  mixture  described  at  page  554,  is 
imprinted ; 

5.  After  the  cloth  is  dried,  it  is  dipped  in  the  blue-vat  and  exposed  to  the  air ; 
then  washed  at  the  dash-wheel,  and  dried. 

The  white  figure  is  here  produced  through  the  discharge 
of  the  aluminous  mordant  by  the  acid,  and  by  the  action  of 
the  sulphate  of  zinc  resist  on  the  indigo :  the  blue  figure  is 
produced  by  the  indigo  on  the  white  spots  to  which  the  re- 
sist was  not  applied,  and  the  purple  or  chocolate  ground  re- 
sults from  the  mixture  of  the  indigo  with  the  madder  red.* 

A  discharger  for  one  mordant  is  sometimes  mixed  with  the 
solution  of  another  mordant  on  which  it  exerts  no  action,  so 
that  the  mordant  in  the  discharger  becomes  attached  to  the 
cloth,  on  the  spots  from  which  the  previous  mordant  is  re- 
moved. Thus,  subacetate  of  iron  may  be  separated  from 
a  piece  of  calico,  and  alumina  imparted  in  its  place,  by  ap- 
plying to  the  mordanted  cloth  a  mixture  of  red  liquor  with 
protochloride  of  tin.  In  this  manner,  a  red  figure  on  a  vio- 
let or  lilac  ground  is  sometimes  produced,  the  cloth  being  first 
covered  with  weak  iron  liquor,  then  dried,  printed  with  the  mix- 
ture of  red  liquor  and  protochloride  of  tin,  dunged,  dyed  in  the 
madder  bath,  and  cleared  in  the  usual  manner.  To  obtain 
a  white  figure  as  well  as  the  red,  the  mordanted  cloth  should 
be  also  printed  with  lemon-juice,  or  with  a  mixture  of  lemon- 
juice  and  sulphuric  acid. 

V.  THE  CHINA  BLUE  STYLE.— The  style  of  calico 
printing  by  which  the  china  blue  tints  are  produced,  is  an  in- 

*  A  simpler  and  better  method  of  obtaining  the  same  effect,  is  by  the  "  chocolate 
ground  neutral  style."  The  cloth  is  first  printed  with  the  white  cupreous  resist 
(mixed  with  a  free  acid,  when  a  very  well  defined  figure  is  required),  and  after- 
wards with  the  chocolate  resist  for  the  ground,  the  parts  required  in  blue  being 
left  white.  The  cloth  is  then  aged,  drawn  once  through  the  blue-vat,  washed, 
dunged,  dyed  with  madder,  and  cleared  by  branning.  This  interesting  style  of 
work  is  veiy  little  practised  at  present,  it  being  superseded  by  the  cheaper  but 
much  less  permanent  steam  blue  and  steam  sapan  chocolate. 

72  « 


570  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 

teresting  modification  of  the  topical  style.  These  prints  are 
distinguished  by  having  blue  figures,  usually  of  two  or  three 
different  depths  of  color,  associated  with  white. 

To  produce  such  a  pattern,  the  bleached  calico  is  subjected 
to  the  following  operations  : — 

It  is  first  printed,  either  by  the  block  or  cylinder,  with  a  mixture  of  indigo, 
rpiment  (sulphuret  of  arsenic),  sulphate  of  iron  or  iron  liquor,  gum  or  starch, 
and  water ;  the  proportions  of  gum  or  starch  and  water  being  varied  according  to 
the  depth  of  color  required.  After  being  printed,  the  calico  is  suspended  in  a  dry 
atmosphere  for  a  day  or  two,  and  stretched  in  perpendicular  folds  on  a  rectangular 
wooden  frame,  suspended  by  pulleys  and  a  rope  from  the  ceiling  of  the  apartment. 
The  frame  with  the  cloth  is  then  dipped  in  a  certain  order  into  the  three  following 
liquids:  No.  1,  milk  of  lime;*  No.  2,  solution  of  copperas;  No.  3,  solution  of 
caustic  soda.  These  liquids  are  contained  in  three  adjacent  stone  cisterns,  the  tops 
of  which  are  on  a  level  with  the  ground :  the  usual  dimensions  of  the  cistern? 
are  eight  or  nine  feet  in  length,  four  feet  in  depth,  and  three  feet  in  width. 

The  goods  are  dipped  several  times,  alternately,  in  the  vats  No.  1  and  No.  2, 
with  exposure  to  the  air  for  a  short  time  between  each  dip ;  they  are  not  dipped  so 
frequently  into  the  vat  No.  3,  and  the  dipping  in  this  always  immediately  follows 
No.  2.  By  these  operations,  the  insoluble  indigo-blue  applied  to  the  surface  of 
the  cloth  becomes  converted  into  indigotin,  which  is  dissolved  and  transferred  to 
the  interior  of  the  fibres,  where  it  is  precipitated  in  the  original  insoluble  form. 

The  various  phenomena  which  occur  in  the  dipping  of 
China  blues,  are  not  difficult  of  explanation  with  the  lights  of 
modern  chemistry. t 

The  following  method  of  preparing  the  China  blue  mixture 
of  different  shades  is  described  by  M.  Thillaye,  in  his  useful 
work  on  calico-printing.t    The  materials  employed  are, 

15f  pounds  of  indigo,  in  coarse  powder, 

3?  pounds  of  orpiment, 
22  pounds  of  copperas,  and 
9£  gallons  of  water,  or  water  and  gum- water. 

The  indigo,  orpiment,  copperas,  and  four  gallons  and  a 
half  of  the  water,  are  well  ground  together  in  a  mill  for  three 
days ;  the  mass  is  then  removed,  and  the  mill  is  washed  with 

*  The  milk  of  lime,  for  dipping  China  blue  prints,  may  be  prepared  by  mixing 
two  hundred  pounds  of  lime  with  a  thousand  gallons  of  water.  When  in  con- 
stant use,  the  lime-vat  requires  to  be  replenished  twice  daily,  both  with  lime  and 
water. 

t  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III. 

t  Manuel  du  fabricant  d'Indienncs,  Paris,  1834. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


571 


a  gallon  of  water  which  is  added  to  the  mixture.  The  re- 
maining four  gallons  of  water  are  afterwards  added  ;  but  if  a 
very  thick  blue  is  required,  as  much  strong  gum-water  is  in- 
troduced instead.  From  this  mixture,  which  may  be  called 
No.  1,  several  lighter  shades  are  procured  by  diluting  it  with 
water  or  gum-water  in  the  following  order  : — 

Quantity  by  measure  of  Quantity  by  measure  of 

No.  No.  1.  water  or  gum-water. 

1    1   mixed  with   0 

2    11    "    1 

3    10    «    2 

4                       8    "    4 

5                       6    "    6 

6                       4    "    8 

7                       2    "    10 

8                       2    "    12 

9                        2    "    14 

10                        2    "   16 

11                        2                 ...  "    18 

12                       2    "    20 

To  produce  a  small  single  blue  figure,  the  mixture  No.  5, 
thickened  with  starch,  may  be  applied  by  the  block,  and  No. 
4,  thickened  with  gum,  by  the  roller. 

For  two  different  blues,  applied  by  the  block,  there  may  be 
used,  1st,  the  mixture  No.  4,  thickened  with  starch ;  and  2nd, 
No.  9,  thickened  with  gum. 

For  three  different  blues,  applied  by  the  block,  there  may 
be  taken,  1st,  the  mixture  No.  5,  thickened  with  starch  ; 
2nd,  No.  7,  thickened  with  starch ;  and  3rd,  No.  10,  thick- 
ened with  gum. 

The  mixture  described  by  M.  Thillaye  is  not  exactly  the 
same  as  that  commonly  employed  in  England.  Instead  of 
copperas,  the  Lancashire  printers  generally  use  iron  liquor, 
and  British  gum  instead  of  common  gum ;  they  also  take 
little  more  than  half  as  much  orpiment  as  is  directed  in  the 
recipe  of  M.  Thillaye.  The  following  proportions  of  the 
materials  will  probably  be  found  to  form  a  convenient  mix- 
ture : — 


16  pounds  of  indigo. 
5  or  6  gallons  of  strong  iron  liquor, 


572 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


2  pounds  of  orpiment,  and 
British  gum  and  water  sufficient  to  make  8  gallons. 

When  required  for  use,  this  mixture,  which  contains  two 
pounds  of  indigo  to  the  gallon,  may  be  diluted  with  water  or 
gum-water  in  the  following  order  : — 

Quantity  of  indigo 

Quantity  by  measure  Quantity  by  measure  of  in  one  gallon  of 

of  above  mixture.  water  or  gum-water.  the  mixture. 

No.  lbs.  oz. 

1    1    0    2  0 

2    1    h    1  5| 

3    1    I    1  3i 

4    1    1    1  0 

5    1    2    0  10f 

6    1    3    0  8 

7    1    5    0  5i 

8    1    7    0  4 

9    1    9    0  3^ 

10    1    12   i   0  2J 

11    1    16    0  1| 

The  strength  of  the  solution  of  copperas  is  varied  from 
3i°  Twad.  (1-017)  to  6°  Twad.  (1-030),  it  being  regulated 
more  by  the  quantity  of  the  figure  in  the  pattern  than  by 
the  depth  of  color  required.  The  kind  of  copperas  generally 
preferred  for  this  purpose  is  that  technically  known  as  "  green 
copperas."* 

The  copperas  vat  does  not  require  replenishing  quite  so 
frequently  as  the  lime-vat,  and  the  cistern  need  not  be 
emptied  for  six  months  or  longer.  The  bottom  and  sides  of 
the  cistern  become  lined  with  a  dense  crystalline  deposit  of 
oxide  of  iron  and  sulphate  of  lime,  as  hard  as  the  cistern  it- 
self. The  strength  of  the  solution  of  caustic  soda  may  vary 
from  6°  to  9°  Twad.  (1-030  to  1.045).  It  is  made  in  the  usual 
manner  by  carbonate  of  soda  and  quick-lime. 

The  order  of  dipping  the  frame  into  the  three  cisterns  is  as 
follows : — 

1.  Dip  in  the  first  vat  (lime)  for  ten  minutes;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

2.  Dip  in  the  second  vat  (copperas)  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

3.  Dip  in  the  first  vat  for  ten  minutes  ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

4.  Dip  in  the  second  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 


*  See  chapter  V.J  Part  III.,  articles  Chemistry  of  the  Blue  Vat,  Sulphate  of  Iron. 
Impurity  of  Copperas,  and  tlie  Common  Blue  Vat. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


573 


5.  Dip  in  the  third  vat  (soda)  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

6.  Dip  in  the  second  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

7.  Dip  in  the  first  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

8.  Dip  in  the  second  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

9.  Dip  in  the  first  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

10.  Dip  in  the  second  vat  for  ten  minutes;  drain  for  five  minutes. 

11.  Dip  in  the  third  vat  for  ten  minutes ;  drain  for  five  minutes.* 


*  Dr.  Ure's  remarks  on  this  style  (the  China-blue  style)  are  as  follows : — 
Take  16  pounds  of  coarsely  ground  indigo,  and 

4  pounds  of  sulphuret  of  arsenic ;  dissolve  22  pounds  of  sulphate  of  iron 
in  6  gallons  of  water ;  introduce  these  three  matters  into  the  indigo  mill,  and  grind 
them  for  three  days.  If  it  be  wished  to  have  a  thickened  blue,  this  mixture  must 
have  pounded  gum  added  to  it ;  but  if  not,  5  gallons  of  water  are  added.  This 
color  may  be  called  blue  No  1. 

The  following  table  exhibits  the  different  gradations  of  China  blue : — 


Course. 

Quantity  by  measure  of 
No.  1. 

Quantity  by  measure  of 
water  or  mucilage. 

No.  1 

1 

0 

2 

11 

1 

3 

10 

2 

4 

8 

4 

5 

6 

6 

6 

4 

8 

7 

2 

10 

8 

2 

12 

9 

2 

14 

10 

2 

16 

11 

2 

18 

12. 

2 

20 

I  shall  now  give  examples  of  working  this  style  by  the  block  and  cylinder : — 
Impression  of  a  single  blue  with  small  dots. 
For  the  block,  blue  No.  5,  thickened  with  starch. 
For  the  cylinder,  No.  4,  thickened  with  gum. 

Impression  of  two  (liferent  blues  with  the  block. 
First  blue,  No.  4,  with  starch. 
Second  blue,  No.  9,  with  gum. 

Impression  of  three  blues  with  the  block. 
First  blue,  No.  5,  with  starch. 
Second  blue,  No.  7,  with  starch. 
Third  blue,  No.  10,  with  gum. 

After  printing-on  the  blues,  the  pieces  are  hung  up  for  two  days,  in  a  dry  and 
airy  place,  but  not  too  dry;  then  they  are  dipped  as  follows: — Three  vats  are 
mounted,  which  may  be  distinguished  by  the  numbers  1,  2,  3. 

No.  1.  300  pounds  of  lime  to  1,800  gallons  of  water. 

No.  2.  Solution  of  sulphate  of  iron  of  spec.  grav.  1-048. 

3.  Solution  of  caustic  soda  of  spec.  grav.  1-055;  made  from  soda  crystals,  quick- 
lime, and  water,  as  usual. 


574 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


In  the  dipping  of  China  blues,  care  should  be  taken  to 
swing  the  frames  during  the  operation ;  and  when  the  last 
dip  is  given,  the  piece  is  to  be  plunged  upon  its  frame  into  a 
fourth  vat,  containing  dilute  sulphuric  acid  of  spec.  grav.  1-027. 
This  immersion  is  for  the  purpose  of  removing  the  oxide  of 
iron,  deposited  upon  the  calico  in  the  alternate  passages 
through  the  sulphate  of  iron  and  lime  vats.  They  are  then 
rinsed  an  hour  in  running  water,  and  finally  brightened  in  the 
above  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  slightly  tepid.  Sometimes  they 
are  subjected  to  a  soap  bath,  at  the  temperature  of  120°.  By 
the  addition  of  nitrate  of  lead  to  the  indigo  vat,  the  blue  be- 
comes more  lively. 

VI.  Steam  colors. — Before  the  printed  cloth  is  exposed  to 
steam,  the  coloring  matter  may  in  general  be  easily  removed 
by  washing  with  pure  water ;  but  afterwards  it  is  attached  to 
the  tissues  almost  as  strongly  as  in  any  other  style  of  printing, 
presenting,  moreover,  a  brilliancy  and  delicacy  hardly  attain- 
able by  any  other  process.*  Printing  by  steam  is  one  of  the 
most  important  of  modern  improvements  in  calico-printing ; 
it  is  practised  not  only  on  goods  of  cotton,  but  also  on  silk, 
woolen  cloths,  and  chalys. 

The  brilliancy  and  permanency  of  almost  all  steam  colors 
are  greatly  increased  by  impregnating  the  dqth  with  a  solu- 
tion of  tin,  or,  for  some  styles,  with  a  solution  of  acetate  of 
alumina,  previous  to  the  application  of  the  colors.  The  solu- 
tion of  tin  now  commonly  used  for  this  purpose  is  the  stannatc 
of  potash,  which  is,  when  properly  made,  a  solution  of  peroxide 
of  tin  in  caustic  potash  ;  this  preparation  sometimes  contains 
protoxide  of  tin,  but  the  stannate  containing  the  peroxide  only 
is  preferred.!  This  alkaline  solution  is  not  so  injurious  to  the 
fibre  of  cotton  as  the  perchloride.  After  having  been  padded 
in  the  solution  of  stannate  of  potash,  the  pieces  are  usually 


The  pieces  being  suspended  on  the  frames,  are  to  be  dipped  in  the  first  vat,  and 
left  in  it  ten  minutes ;  then  withdrawn,  drained  for  five  minutes ;  next  plunged 
into  the  second  vat  for  ten  minutes,  and  drained  also  for  five,  &c. 

*  All  the  fugitive  topical  colors  not  fixed  by  steaming  are  termed  spirit,  fancy 
or  wash-off"  colors. 

t  See  page  270. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


575 


passed  through  a  cistern  containing  a  solution  of  muriate  of 
ammonia,  to  produce  a  precipitate  of  peroxide  of  tin.  Some 
printers  employ  very  dilute  sulphuric  acid  instead  of  a  solu- 
tion of  - muriate  of  ammonia,  but  the  latter  is  decidedly  pre- 
ferable. 

To  the  cloth  thus  prepared,  or  occasionally  without  any 
preparation  except  bleaching,  the  solutions  of  the  mixed  color- 
ing materials  and  mordants,  properly  thickened,  are  applied 
either  by  the  roller  or  block.  Steam  colors  are  chiefly 
grounded  in  by  the  block  to  cloths  which  have  been  already 
printed  and  finished  off  according  to  other  styles  of  work, 
particularly  the  madder  style. 

The  following  recipes  will  afford  examples  of  the  principal 
mixtures  which  are  applied  to  cotton  as  steam  colors.  The 
mordant  most  frequently  used  for  steam  colors  is  red  liquor, 
mixed  with  oxalic  or  some  other  acid  to  prevent  the  precipita- 
tion of  the  compound  of  coloring  matter  and  mordant. 

Steam  red. — The  best  steam  red  for  cotton  is  obtained  by 
decoction  of  cochineal,  with  oxalic  acid  and  protochloride  of 
tin.  The  mixture  obtained  according  to  the  following  recipe 
may  be  applied  either  by  the  roller  or  block  : — 

1  gallon  of  cochineal  liquor  of  6°  Tw., 
1  pound  of  starch, 

3  ounces  of  oxalic  acid, 

4  ounces  of  cryst.  protochloride  of  tin. 

The  cochineal  liquor  is  first  boiled  with  the  starch  for  a  few 
minutes ;  when  the  mixture  is  half  cold,  the  oxalic  acid  is 
added,  and  as  soon  as  the  acid  is  dissolved  the  salt  of  tin  is 
introduced. 

A  cheaper  but  less  brilliant  steam  red,  extensively  used  by 
some  printers,  is  prepared  by  substituting  peach-wood  liquor 
for  cochineal  liquor  in  the  above. 

Steam  pink. — A  decoction  of  Brazil-wood  with  a  small 
quantity  of  the  solution  of  muriate  of  tin,  called,  at  Manches- 
ter, new  tin  crystals,  and  a  little  nitrate  of  copper  to  assist  in 
fixing  the  color ;  properly  thickened,  dried,  and  steamed  for 
not  more  than  twenty  minutes,  on  account  of  the  corrosive 
action  of  muriate  of  tin  when  the  heat  is  too  strong. 


576 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Cochineal  pink. — Acetate  of  alumina  is  mixed  with  decoc- 
tion of  cochineal,  a  little  tartaric  acid  and  solution  of  tin ; 
then  thickened  with  starch,  dried,  and  steamed. 

Steam  yellow. — Either  decoction  of  Persian  berries,  decoc 
tion  of  quercitron,  or  decoction  of  fustic,  may  be  used  as  ? 
steam  yellow,  but  the  first  is  most  commonly  employed. 

No.  l. 

1  gallon  of  berry  liquor  of  4°  Tw., 
5  ounces  of  alum,  thickened  with  about 
14  ounces  of  starch. 

No.  2. 

1  gallon  of  berry  liquor  of  4°  Tw., 
H  gill  of  red  liquor  of  18°  Tw., 

2  ounces  of  crystals  of  protochloride  of  tin,  and  about 
14  ounces  of  starch. 

The  mixture  made  according  to  the  following  recipe,  affords 
a  darker  shade  than  either  of  the  preceding  : — 

No.  3. 

1  gallon  of  a  mixture  of  equal  measures  of  decoction  of  Persian  berries  at  15° 
Tw.,  and  of  decoction  of  fustic  at  15°  Tw., 
14  ounces  of  starch, 
7  ounces  of  alum, 

7  ounces  of  crystals  of  protochloride  of  tin. 

The  decoctions  of  the  dye  stuffs  are  mixed  with  the  alum 
and  starch,  and  heated  until  properly  thickened  ;  the  mixture 
should  be  soon  withdrawn  from  the  fire,  and  when  cold  mixed 
with  the  salt  of  tin. 

The  preparation  made  as  No.  2  will  probably  be  found  su- 
perior to  either  of  the  others  for  cotton  goods.  The  steaming 
for  No.  3  must  be  continued  only  a  short  time,  else  the  fibre 
of  the  cotton  would  be  apt  to  become  corroded  by  the  salt  of 
tin.  This  preparation  is  better  adapted  (as  a  steam  color)  for 
fabrics  of  wool  and  silk  than  for  those  of  cotton,  but  it  may 
be  advantageously  applied  to  cotton  as  a  spirit  or  wash-off 
color.  An  orange  stripe  may  also  be  produced  by  a  decoction 
of  Persian  berries,  the  mordant  being  protoxide  of  tin  only. 
A  convenient  mixture  for  producing  this  color  is  made  as  fol- 
lows : — 

1  gallon  of  berry  liquor  made  from  three  pounds  of  berries  to  the  gallon,  and 


CALICO   PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


577 


4  ounces  of  cryst.  protochloride  of  tin.  Boil  together  for  a  few  minutes  and 
thicken  with 

3  to  4  pounds  of  British  gum,  or  I  pound  of  starch. 

The  cloth  may  be  steamed  and  washed  in  the  usual  man- 
ner, but  this  color  becomes  strongly  attached  by  merely  age- 
ing the  cloth  for  two  or  three  days,  and  then  passing  it 
through  hot  chalky  water. 

Steam  blue. — A  very  beautiful  steam  blue  may  be  commu- 
nicated to  cotton  and  woolen  goods  by  means  of  a  mixture  of 
yellow  or  red  prussiate  of  potash,  with  tartaric,  oxalic,  or  sul- 
phuric acid,  and  alum  or  perchloride  of  tin.  If  for  applying 
to  cotton  goods,  alum  is  used  ;  but  if  for  woolen  fabrics,  per- 
chloride of  tin  is  preferable.  For  printing  on  cottons  by  the 
roller,  either  No.  1  or  No.  2  of  the  following  mixtures  may  be 
used : — 

No.  l. 

1  gallon  of  water, 

\\  pounds  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash, 
3  to  4  ounces  of  alum, 

5  to  6  ounces  of  oil  of  vitriol, 
1  \  pounds  of  starch. 

No.  2. 

1  gallon  of  water, 

1  \  pounds  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash, 
3  to  4  ounces  of  alum, 
10  to  12  ounces  of  tartaric  acid, 
\\  pounds  of  starch. 

The  starch  and  prussiate  of  potash  are  boiled  in  the  water, 
and  Avhen  the  mixture  is  withdrawn  from  the  fire  and  cooled, 
the  sulphuric  or  tartaric  acid  and  alum  are  introduced.  The 
mixture  made  as  No.  2  affords  a  more  lively  color  than  that 
made  as  No.  1,  but  the  latter  is  least  expensive. 


*  Sleam  blue. — Prussiate  of  potash,  tartaric  acid,  and  a  little  sulphuric  acid,  are 
dissolved  in  water,  and  thickened  with  starch  ;  then  applied  by  the  cylinder,  dried 
at  a  moderate  heat,  and  steamed  for  25  minutes.  They  are  rinsed  and  dried  after 
the  steaming.  The  tartaric  acid,  at  a  high  temperature,  decomposes  here  a  portion 
of  the  ferrocyanic  acid,  and  fixes  the  remaining  ferrocyanate  of  iron  (Prussian 
blue)  in  the  fibre  of  the  cloth.  The  ground  may  have  been  previously  padded  and 
dyed  ;  the  acids  will  remove  the  mordant  from  the  points  to  which  the  above  paste 
has  been  applied,  an  J  bring  out  a  bright  blue  upon  them. — Urc. 

72 


578 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


No.  3. 

1  gallon  of  water, 
3  to  3 1  ounces  of  alum, 
1£  to  2  ounces  of  oxalic  acid, 
3  to  4  ounces  of  tartaric  acid, 
20  ounces  of  gum, 

12  ounces  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash. 

The  gum,  acids,  and  alum,  may  be  first  dissolved  in  the 
water  with  the  assistance  of  heat,  and  when  the  mixture  is 
quite  cold,  the  prussiate  of  potash  is  added.  The  time  neces- 
sary for  steaming  cottons  printed  with  either  of  these  prepara- 
tions is  about  thirty  minutes.  When  withdrawn  from  the 
steaming  cylinder  or  chamber,  the  goods  present,  if  yellow 
prussiate  of  potash  is  used,  a  blueish- white  color,  which 
changes  to  deep  blue  on  exposure  to  the  air  for  a  couple  of 
days.  The  chemical  change  by  which  the  color  is  produced 
during  the  exposure  to  air  depends  on  the  absorption  of  oxy- 
gen or  the  removal  of  hydrogen ;  as  is  evident  from  the  cir- 
cumstance, that  if  the  goods  are  passed  through  a  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash  as  soon  as  withdrawn  from  the  steaming 
cylinder  or  chamber,  the  blueish-white  changes  to  deep  blue 
immediately.  If  the  red  prussiate  of  potash  is  employed 
instead  of  the  yellow  prussiate,  the  cloths  acquire  the  proper 
blue  color  during  the  steaming,  and  the  depth  of  the  color  is 
not  sensibly  increased  by  exposure  to  air  or  to  a  solution  of 
bichromate  of  potash/' 

Orange. — (See  Steam  Green.) 

Steam  Green. — A  very  good  steam  green  may  be  commu- 
nicated to  cotton  goods  by  combining  the  materials  for  pro- 
ducing a  yellow,  with  the  preceding  mixture  for  steam  blue  ; 
thus, 

1  gallon  of  berry  liquor  made  from  a  pound  and  a  half  of  Persian  berries  (or  of 
4°  Tw.) 

12  ounces  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash, 

3  to  4  ounces  of  crystals  of  protochloride  of  tin, 

5  to  6  ounces  of  alum, 

3  to  4  ounces  of  oxalic  acid. 

Thicken  with  gum. 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  III,  and  chapters  IV.  and  VI.,  of  the  same  Part 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


579 


The  oxalic  acid,  the  muriatic  acid  derived  from  the  salt  of 
tin,  and  the  sulphuric  acid  united  with  alumina  in  the  alum, 
should  form,  together,  one  equivalent,  or  a  quantity  sufficient 
for  the  saturation  of  one  equivalent  of  a  protoxide  for  every 
two  thirds  of  an  equivalent  of  the  prussiate.  The  time 
required  for  steaming  this  color  is  about  thirty  minutes. 

After  the  color  mixtures  are  printed  on,  the  calico  is  dried 
in  a  warm  atmosphere  for  two  days  before  being  exposed  to 
the  action  of  the  steam.  The  most  common  method  of  ap- 
plying the  steam  is  the  following  : — 

Three  or  four  pieces  of  the  printed  and  dried  calico  are  stitched  together  at  the 
ends  and  coiled  round  a  hollow  cylinder  of  copper,  about  three  feet  in  length  and 
four  inches  in  diameter,  and  perforated  with  holes  about  one-twefth  of  an  inch  in 
diameter  and  half  an  inch  distant  from  each  other.  One  of  the  ends  of  the  cylin- 
der is  open,  to  admit  the  steam;  the  other  is  closed.  The  calico  is  prevented  from 
coming  immediately  into  contact  with  the  cylinder  by  a  roll  of  blanket  stuff,  and 
is  covered  with  a  piece  of  white  calico  tightly  tied  around  the  roll.  During  the 
lapping  and  unlapping  of  the  goods,  the  column  is  placed  horizontally  in  a  frame} 
in  which  it  is  made  to  revolve;  but  during  the  steaming  it  is  fixed  upright,  and 
supplied  with  steam  through  its  bottom  from  the  main  steam  boiler  of  the  works, 
the  quantity  admitted  being  regulated  by  a  stop-cock.  During  the  whole  process 
the  temperature  of  the  steam  should  be  as  near  211°  or  212°,  as  possible:  the  con- 
densation which  takes  -place  beloxc  that  degree  is  apt  to  cause  the  colors  to  run ;  but  a 
higher  temperature  is  also  injurious,  as  a  slight  condensation,  sufficient  to  keep  the 
goods  always  moist,  is  essential  to  the  success  of  the  process. 

The  steaming  is  continued  for  from  twenty  minutes  to  three 
quarters  of  an  hour,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  fabric  and 
the  coloring  mixture.  The  usual  time  with  cottons  is  twenty- 
five  minutes,  and  with  de  laines  from  thirty  to  thirty-five 
minutes.  When  the  steam  is  cut  off  the  goods  should  be 
immediately  unrolled  to  prevent  any  condensation  :  they  are 
then  soft  and  flaccid,  the  material  used  as  a  thickener  for  the 
colors  being  in  a  semi-fluid  state  ;  but  on  exposure  to  the  air 
for  a  few  seconds  only,  the  thickener  solidifies,  and  the  goods 
become  perfectly  dry  and  stiff.  After  the  pieces  have  been 
aged  for  a  day  or  two,  the  thickener  is  separated  by  a  gentle 
wash  in  cold  water. 

To  produce  with  steam  colors  a  pattern  only  containing  a  de- 
sign in  lilac,  pink,  red,  yellow,  black,  and  dark  orange  red,  the 


580 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


cloth  may  be  printed  by  the  five-color  machine,  in  the  follow- 
ing order  : — 

1 .  By  the  first  roller,  with  a  mixture  of  logwood  liquor,  starch,  and  solution  of 
tin  for  producing  the  lilac ; 

2.  By  the  second  and  third  rollers,  with  the  mixtures  for  the  pink  and  red,  one 
containing  weaker  cochineal  or  pcachwood  liquor  than  the  other ; 

3.  By  the  fourth  roller,  with  the  mixture  for  the  yellow ; 

4.  By  the  fifth  roller,  with  the  mixture  for  steam  black ; 

The  dark  orange  red  results  from  the  mixture  of  the  red 
with  the  yellow.  After  being  steamed,  the  cloth  is  aged  in  a 
warm  room  for  two  days  and  two  nights,  and  then  washed  at 
the  rinsing  machine. 

The  following  style,  for  producing  a  design  in  black,  red, 
brown,  green,  and  yellow  on  a  white  ground,  is  a  combinatiot, 
of  the  madder  style  with  a  topical  brown  and  steam  colore 
which  is  susceptible  of  a  great  variety  of  interesting  modifier 
tions  : — 

1.  The  cloth  is  printed  by  the  three-color  machine  in  the  following  manner 
with  iron  liquor,  for  black,  by  the  first  roller ;  with  red  liquor  by  the  second  rollei 
and  with  catechue  brown,  by  the  third  roller. 

2.  After  being  printed,  the  cloth  is  aged  for  two  days,  dunged,  dyed  in  the  mad 
der-bath  and  cleared. 

3.  The  cloth  is  lastly  printed  by  the  block  with  the  mixtures  for  steam  green, 
and  steam  yellow,  then  steamed,  aged,  and  washed. 

By  a  similar  series  of  operations,  a  design  may  be  imparted 
in  black,  brown,  lilac,  pink,  green,  blue,  orange,  and  yellow, 
on  a  white  ground.  The  cloth  is  first  printed  by  the  four- 
color  machine  with  iron  liquor  of  two  strengths,  one  for  the 
black,  the  other  for  the  lilac ;  with  red  liquor  for  the  pink, 
and  with  the  mixture  for  catechue  brown.  After  being  aged, 
dunged,  dyed  with  madder,  and  cleared  as  usual,  the  cloth  is 
printed  by  the  block  with  the  mixtures  for  steam  blue  and 
steam  yellow,  and  then  steamed  in  the  ordinary  manner.  To 
produce  the  orange,  the  steam  yellow  is  printed  on  a  part  of 
the  pink,  and  the  green  results  from  a  mixture  of  some  of  the 
yellow  with  the  blue. 

As  an  example  of  the  combination  of  madder  colors  with 
steam  colors,  for  red  and  chocolate  stripes,  the  cloth  may  be 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


581 


printed  with  red  liquor  and  the  mixture  of  red  liquor  with 
iron  liquor,  and  after  dunging,  dyeing,  and  clearing  in  the 
usual  manner,  the  mixture  for  steam  orange  may  be  applied 
by  the  block.* 

Steam  Purple. — This  topical  color  is  made  by  digesting 
acetate  of  alumina  upon  ground  logwood  with  heat ;  strain- 
ing, thickening  with  gum  Senegal,  and  applying  the  paste  by 
the  cylinder  machine.  To  a  gallon  of  red  liquor  of  18°  Tw., 
heated  to  about  140°  Fahr.,  three  pounds  of  ground  logwood 
are  added  ;  the  mixture  is  well  stirred  for  about  half  an  hour, 
and  then  strained  through  a  cloth  filter,  the  residue  on  the 
filter  being  washed  with  two  quarts  of  hot  water,  which  are 
received  into  the  first  liquid.  The  mixture  thus  obtained  may 
be  diluted  with  water,  according  to  the  shade  of  color  re- 
quired ;  for  a  moderate  depth,  one  measure  may  be  mixed 
with  three  of  water,  and  thickened  with  sta/ch,  flour,  or  gum. 
This  preparation  may  be  applied  either  by  block  or  roller.f 

Steam  Black. X — The  first  of  the  mixtures  following  is  best 
adapted  for  the  roller,  the  other  for  grounding  in  by  the 
block : — 

No.  l. 

1  pint  of  red  liquor  of  18°  Tw., 

2  pints  of  iron  liquor  of  24°  Tw., 

1  gallon  of  logwood  liquor  of  8°  Tw., 

If  pounds  of  starch, 

1  \  pints  of  pyroligneous  acid  of  7°  Tw. 

All  these  materials  may  be  mixed  promiscuously  and  then 
foiled  for  a  few  minutes  to  form  a  mucilage.  The  cotton 
requires  to  be  steamed  about  thirty  minutes. 

*  Green,  blue,  chocolate,  with  white  ground,  by  steam. — Prussiate  of  potash  and 
tartaric  acid,  thickened,  for  the  blue ;  the  same  mixture  with  berry-liquor  and  ace- 
tate of  alumina,  thickened,  for  the  green ;  extract  of  logwood  with  acetate  of  alu- 
mina and  cream  of  tartar,  thickened,  for  the  chocolate.  These  three  topical  colors 
are  applied  at  once  by  the  three-color  cylinder  machine ;  dried  and  steamed. 
Though  greens  are  fixed  by  the  steam,  their  color  is  much  improved  by  passing 
the  cloth  through  solution  of  bichromate  of  potash.—  lire. 

t  See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Mercer's  Assistant  Mordant. 

t  Steam  Brown. — A  mixed  infusion  of  logwood,  cochineal,  and  Persian  berries, 
with  cream  of  tartar,  alum  (or  acetate  of  alumina),  and  a  little  tartaric  acid,  thick- 
ened, dried,  and  steamed. 


582  DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


No.  2. 

3 £  pints  of  peachwood  liquor  of  6°  Tw., 

7  pints  of  logwood  liquor  of  6°  Tw., 
12  ounces  of  starch, 
14  ounces  of  British  gum, 

3  ounces  of  sulphate  of  copper, 

1  ounce  of  copperas, 

3  ounces  of  a  neutral  solution  of  pernitrate  of  iron,  made  by  mixing  one  pound 
of  acetate  of  lead  with  three  pounds  of  the  common  acid  nitrate  of  iron  of  122°  Tw. 

The  logwood  liquor  and  peachwood  liquor  are  mixed  and 
divided  into  two  equal  portions,  one  of  which  is  boiled  for  a 
short  time  with  the  starch,  and  the  other  with  the  British 
gum.  The  two  liquids  are  afterwards  mixed,  and  the  re- 
maining ingredients  are  added ;  the  nitrate  of  iron  being  in- 
troduced  last,  but  not  before  the  mixture  is  cold. 

PRINTING  OF  SILKS,  MERINOES,  MOUSSELIN  DE 
LAINES,  &c. — TJhe  fixation  of  coloring  matters  on  fabrics 
of  silk  and  wool  is  commonly  effected  by  the  process  of  steam- 
ing. These  fabrics  were  formerly  printed  entirely  by  the 
block,  but  latterly  the  roller  and  the  press-machine  have  been 
substituted. 

The  color  mixtures  for  de  laines,  which  are  formed  of  cot- 
ton and  wool,  should  be  of  such  a  nature  as  to  afford  a  uni- 
form deposite  of  coloring  matter  on  both  the  animal  and  vege- 
table fibre.  These  mixtures  are  sometimes  composed  of  two 
distinct  bases,  one  capable  of  attaching  itself  firmly  to  the 
wool,  the  other  to  the  cotton.  Thus,  a  preparation  sometimes 
used  for  imparting  a  blue  color  to  the  laines,  is  a  mixture  of 
the  steam  blue  for  cotton,  with  indigo-paste  or  soluble  blue 
(sulph-indigotate  of  potash)  for  the  wool.  In  a  peculiar  kind 
of  fancy  dyeing,  the  woolen  thread  only  is  dyed,  and  the  cot- 
ton is  afterward  perfectly  bleached  by  exposing  the  dyed  de 
laines  to  a  dilute  solution  of  bleaching  powder. 

In  general,  the  only  difference  between  the  composition  of 
the  mixtures  for  steam  colors  for  woolen  goods  and  those  for 
cotton  goods,  is  that  the  former  contain  more  free  acid  than 
the  latter,  or  that  the  coloring  matter  is  held  in  solution  more 
strongly  in  the  former  than  in  the  latter.  Whether  the  mor- 
dant is  perchloride  of  tin,  protochloride  of  tin,  or  alum,  a  con- 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


583 


siderable  quantity  of  tartaric  or  oxalic  acid,  is  almost  always 
introduced.  The  most  vivid  colors  are  generally  obtained  by 
protochloride  of  tin  with  either  oxalic  or  tartaric  acid.* 

All  the  prints  above  referred  to  are  applied,  not  by  the  cyl- 
inder but  the  block,  and  are  fixed  by  the  application  of  steam 
in  one  of  four  ways  ;  1.  By  the  lantern;  2.  By  the  cask; 
3.  By  the  chest ;  or,  4.  By  the  chamber. 

1.  By  the  lantern. — In  this  mode  of  exposure  to  steam,  the 
goods  are  stretched  upon  a  frame ;  and  therefore  the  appara- 
tus may  be  described  under  two  heads ;  the  lantern  and  the 
frame.  The  former  is  made  of  copper,  in  the  shape  of  a  box 
A  B  C  D  E,  fig.  34,  open  below,  and  with  Fig.  34. 

a  sloping  roof  above,  to  facilitate  the  trick- 
ling down  of  the  water  condensed  upon 
the  walls.  The  sides  B  C  D  E,  are  4|  feet 
high,  6  feet  long,  and  4  feet  wide.  The 
distance  of  the  point  A,  from  the  line  E  B, 
is  2  feet.  At  F,  is  a  brass  socket,  which 
may  be  stopped  with  a  cork  ;  and  there  is 
a  similar  one  at  the  other  side.  This 
kind  of  penthouse  may  be  raised  by 
means  of  a  pulley  with  cords  fixed  to  the  /~;  tApin  lh 
four  angles  of  the  roof  E  B  ;  and  it  rests  upon  the  table  G  H, 
a  little  larger  than  the  area  of  the  box,  which  stands  upon  the 
four  feet  I  K.  Round  the  borders  of  the  table  there  is  a  tri- 
angular groove  a  b,  for  receiving  the  lower  edges  of  the  box. 
and  it  is  stuffed  steam-tight  with  lists  of  cloth.  Through  the 
centre  of  the  table,  the  two-inch  steam  pipe  M,  passes ;  it  is 
surmounted  with  a  hemispherical  rose  pierced  with  numerous 
holes  for  the  equal  distribution  of  the  steam.  Right  above  it, 
a  disc  N,  is  placed  upon  four  feet.    The  tube  L,  communicates 

*  The  brilliant  steam-blue  distinguished  when  on  woolen  goods  as  "royal  blue," 
is  formed  through  the  decomposition  of  hydroferrocyanic  acid.  The  composition 
of  the  mixture  printed  on  the  cloth  is  much  the  same  as  the  steam-blue  for  cotton, 
but  is  more  concentrated,  and  perchloride  of  tin  is  introduced  instead  of  alum. 
The  solution  of  yellow  prussiate  of  potash,  which  should  contain  not  less  than 
three  pounds  of  the  prussiate  in  a  gallon,  is  mixed  with  sufficient  tartaric  acid  to 
precipitate  the  whole  of  its  potash  as  bitartrate  of  potash  (cream  of  tartar),  which 
may  be  separated  and  employed  in  the  preparation  of  tartaric  acid. 


4iJ  s  fell    s  s 


584 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


with  a  box  P,  which  has  a  syphon  Q,,  to  let  off  the  condensed 
water.  At  the  upper  part  of  this  box  the  tube  L,  terminates. 
The  table  G  H,  slopes  towards  the  part  G,  where  the  syphon 
R  is  placed  for  drawing  off  the  water. 

The  frame  is  of  such  dimensions,  that  it  may  stand  in  the 
four  corners  of  the  table  at  S  S.  The  second  part  embraces 
an  open  square  frame,  which  is  formed  by  spars  of  wood  2 
inches  square,  mortised  together  ;  and  is  3  feet  8  inches  wide, 
5  feet  8  inches  long,  and  4  feet  3  inches  high  ;  it  is  strength- 
ened with  cross  bars.  Upon  the  two  sides  of  its  breadth,  two 
rows  of  round  brass  hooks  are  placed,  about  half  an  inch 
apart ;  they  are  soldered  to  a  copper  plate  fixed  to  uprights  by 
means  of  screws. 

Before  hanging  up  the  goods,  a  piece  of  cloth  3  feet  8  inches 
long,  and  4  feet  wide,  is  placed  upon  the  row  of  hooks ;  and 
3  feet  of  it  are  left  hanging  out. 

One  foot  within,  the  hooks  pass  through  the  cloth.  A  sim- 
ilar one  is  fitted  to  the  other  side.  This  cloth  is  intended  to 
cover  the  goods  hung  upon  the  hooks ;  and  it  is  kept  straight 
by  resting  upon  strings.  The  pieces  are  attached  zig-zag 
from  one  hook  to  another.  When  the  frame  is  filled,  the  bag 
is  put  within  the  cloths  ;  it  has  the  same  rectangular  shape 
as  the  frame.  The  pieces  are  in  this  way  all  incased  in  the 
cloth  ;  a  bit  of  it  being  also  put  beneath  to  prevent  moisture 
affecting  that  part. 

When  shawls  are  framed  they  are  attached  with  pins  ;  and 
if  they  be  too  large,  they  are  doubled  back  to  back,  with  the 
fringes  at  top. 

These  arrangements  being  made,  the  frame  is  set  upon  the 
(able,  the  penthouse  is  placed  over  it,  and  the  steam  is  admit- 
ted (say)  from  35  to  45  minutes,  according  to  circumstances. 
The  orifice  P,  is  opened  at  first  to  let  the  air  escape,  and  when 
it  begins  to  discharge  steam  it  is  stopped.  The  frame  is  taken 
out  at  the  proper  time,  the  bag  is  removed,  the  cloths  are  lifted 
off,  and  the  goods  are  spread  out  for  airing.  Three  frames 
and  six  bags  are  required  for  a  constant  succession  of  work. 
The  above  apparatus  is  particularly  suitable  for  silks. 

2.  The  drum. — This  is  the  most  simple  mode  of  steaming. 


CALICO   PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


585 


The  apparatus  is  a  drum  of  white  wood,  FiS-  35- 
2  inches  thick,  Fig.  35  ;  the  bottom  is  pierced  £ 
with  a  hole  which  admits  the  steam-pipe  F,  Aw 
terminating  in  a  perforated  rose.  Four  in- 
ches from  the  bottom  there  is  a  canvass 
partition  E,  intended  to  stop  any  drops  of 
water  projected  from  the  tube  F,  and  also 
to  separate  the  condensed  water  from  the 
body  of  the  apparatus.  The  drum  is  cov- 
ered  in  by  a  wooden  head  H,  under  which 
the  goods  are  placed.  It  is  made  fast  either  by  bolts  or  by 
hooks,  G,  G,  thus,  go  ,  to  which  weighted  cords  are  hung. 
The  frame,  I,  Fig.  36,  rests  upon  the  hoop  a  few  Fig.  36. 
inches  from  the  edge.  The  goods  are  hung 
upon  the  frame  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  then 
wrapped  round  with  flannel.  The  frame  is 
studded  with  pin  points,  like  that  of  the  indigo 
vat,  fixed  about  5  inches  asunder.  From  20 
to  30  minutes  suffice  for  one  steaming  operation.  The  up- 
per part  of  the  frame  must  be  covered  also  with  flannels  to 
prevent  the  deposition  of  moisture  upon  it.  At  the  bottom 
of  the  drum  there  is  a  stop-cock  to  let  off  the  condensed  wa- 
ter. According  to  the  size  of  the  figure,  which  is  3  feet  2 
inches,  50  yards  may  be  hung  up  single ;  but  they  may  be 
doubled  as  occasion  may  require. 

3.  The  box. — This  steaming  apparatus  is  convenient 
from  the  large  quantity  of  goods  admissible  at  a  time :  it 
answers  best  for  woolen  goods.  From  12  to  16  pieces,  of 
36  yards  each,  may  be  operated  <  upon  at  once;  and  from 


Fig.  37. 

MTf6  I 


240  to  260  shawls.  It  is  formed  of  a 
deal  box,  A,  B,  C,  D,  Fig.  37,  4  feet 
wide,  6  long,  and  3  high  ;  the  wood 
being  4  inches  thick.  It  is  closed  by 
a  cover  of  the  same  substance,  I,  which 
is  made  steam-tight  at  the  edges  by  a 
list  of  felt.  The  lid  is  fastened  down 
by  5  cross  bars  of  iron,  a,  a,  a,  «,  a,  which  are  secured  by 


screws,  c,  c,  c,  c,  c,  Fig.  38. 


The  ends  of  these  cross  bars  are 
74 


586 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Fig.  40. 


let  into  the  notches  b,  b,  b,  b,  6,  on  the 
edge  of  the  box.    The  safety  valve  M, 
fig.  37,  is  placed  upon  the  lid.  For 
taking  off  the  lid,  there  are  rings  at  the 
four  corners,  d,  d,  d,  d,  bearing  cords, 
F,  F,  F,  F.    These  join  at  the  centre 
into  one,  which  passes  over  a  pulley. 
Eight  inches  from  the  bottom  of  the 
box  there  is  a  horizontal  canvass  partition,  beneath  which 
the  steam  is  discharged  from  the  pipe  L, .  fig.  39.    There  are 
Fig.  39.  two  ledges,  E,  F,  G,  H,  at  the  sides  for 

receiving  the  bobbins.  The  tube,  E, 
runs  round  the  box,  as  shown  by  the 
letters  d:  a,  e,  b :  the  end,  d,  is  shut ; 
but  the  side  and  top  are  perforated  with 
many  holes  in  the  direction  towards 
the  centre  of  the  box.  Fig.  40  shows 
the  arrangement  of  the  lower  set  of 
bobbins  :  that  of  the  upper  set  is  shown 
by  the  dotted  lines :  it  is  seen  to  be  in 
an  alternate  position,  one  lying  between 
two  others.  They  are  formed  of  pieces 
of  deal  4  inches  broad,  1  inch  thick, 
and  of  a  length  equal  to  the  width  of  the  box.  They  are  first 
wrapped  round  with  5  or  6  turns  of  doubled  flannel  or  calico : 
the  piece  of  goods  is  laid  over  it  upon  a  table,  and  then  wrap- 
ped round.  At  the  end  of  the  piece,  several  folds  of  the  cov- 
ering must  be  put,  as  also  a  roll  of  flannel.  The  two  ends 
must  be  slightly  tied  with  packthread.  When  these  flat  bob- 
bins are  arranged  in  a  box,  the  steam  is  let  on  them,  and  con- 
tinued  about  45  minutes  ;  it  is  then  shut  off,  the  lid  is  re- 
moved and  the  pieces  are  unrolled. 

4.  The  chamber. — The  interior  height  of  the  chamber, 
A,  B,  C,  D,  fig.  41,  is  nine  feet,  the  length  12  feet,  and  the 
breadth  9  feet.  The  steam  is  introduced  into  it  by  two  pipes, 
a  b  c,  d  e  f.  Their  two  ends,  d,  c,  are  shut ;  but  their  sides 
are  all  along  perforated  with  small  holes.  The  frames,  E,  F, 
are  moveable,  and  run  upon  rollers  :  they  are  taken 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


587 


out  by  front  doors,  which  are  made 
of  strong  planks,  shut  by  sliding  A 
in  slots,  and  are  secured  by  strong 
iron  bars  and  pressure  screws. 
The  cross  rods,  E,  F,  G,  H,  are 
provided  with  hooks  for  hanging 
up  the  pieces.  There  is  a  safety- 
valve  in  the  top  of  this  large  cham- 
ber. The  dimensions  of  the  frame 
are  10  feet  long,  3  feet  wide,  and 
7  high.  Three  feet  and  a  half 
from  the  upper  part  of  the  frame, 
a  row  of  hooks  is  fixed  for  hang-  ^ 
ing  on  a  double  row  of  pieces,  as  ( 
shown  in  the  figure.  Over  the  frame,  woolen  blankets  are 
laid  to  protect  it  from  drops  of  water  that  might  fall  from  the 
roof  of  the  chamber.  When  the  hooks  are  two-thirds  of  an 
inch  apart,  24  pieces,  of  28  yards  each,  may  be  suspended  at 
once.    The  period  of  steaming  is  from  45  to  60  minutes. 

Muslins  and  silks  do  not  require  so  high  a  temperature  as 
woolen  goods.  When  the  stuffs  are  padded  with  color,  like 
merinoes  and  chalys,  they  must  not  be  folded  together,  for 
fear  of  stains,  which  are  sometimes  occasioned  by  the  column 
in  steam  calico-printing,  where  the  end  which  receives  the 
first  impression  of  the  steam  is  seldom  of  the  same  shade  as 
the  rest  of  the  goods.  The  duration  of  the  steaming  depends 
upon  the  quantity  of  acid  in  the  mordant,  and  of  saline  solu- 
tion in  the  topical  color ;  the  more  of  which  are  present  the 
shorter  should  be  the  steaming  period.  A  dry  vapor  is  requi- 
site in  all  cases ;  for  when  it  becomes  moist,  from  a  feeble 
supply  or  external  condensation,  the  goods  become  streaky  or 
stained  by  the  spreading  of  the  colors. 

1.  Black  figures  are  given  by  decoction  of  logwood  thick- 
ened with  starch,  to  wrhich  a  little  oxalic  acid  is  added  while 
hot,  and,  after  it  is  cold,  neutralized  solution  of  nitrate  of 
iron. 

2.  Dark  blue  for  a  ground. — Decoction  of  logwood,  and 
archil  thickened  with  starch  ;  to  which,  while  the  paste  is  hot. 


588 


DYEING   AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


a  little  soluble  Prussian  blue  is  added  ;  and,  when  it  is  cold, 
neutralized  nitrate  of  iron. 

3.  Deep  poppy  or  ponceau  color. — Cochineal  boiled  in 
starch  water,  with  oxalic  acid  (or  tartaric),  and  perchloride  of 
tin. 

4.  Rose. — Cochineal  infusion  ;  oxalic  acid  ;  perchloride  of 
tin  ;  thickened  with  gum. 

5.  Dark  amaranth. — Decoctions  of  archil  and  cochineal, 
thickened  with  starch :  to  the  paste,  alum  and  perchloride  of 
tin  are  added. 

6.  Capuchin  color. — Quercitron  and  cochineal  thickened 
with  starch ;  to  the  paste  add  oxalic  acid  and  perchloride  of 
tin. 

7.  Annotto  orange. — Dissolve  the  annotto  in  soda  ley,  of 
spec.  grav.  1*07,  at  a  boiling  heat ;  add  aluminate  of  soda,  and 
thicken  with  gum. 

8.  Golden  yellow. — Decoction  of  Persian  berries  thickened 
with  starch  ;  to  which  some  alum  and  muriate  of  tin  are 
added,  with  a  little  perchloride  of  tin  and  oxalic  acid. 

9.  Lemon  yellow. — Persian  berries  ;  starch  ;  alum. 

10.  An  ammoniacal  solution  of  cochineal  is  used  for  making 
many  violet  and  mallow  colors.  It  is  prepared  by  infusing 
cochineal  in  water  of  ammonia  for  24  hours  ;  then  diluting 
with  water,  heating  to  ebullition,  and  straining. 

11.  Fine  violet  is  given  by  ammoniacal  cochineal,  with 
alum  and  oxalic  acid ;  to  which  a  little  aceto-sulphate  of 
indigo  is  added,  and  gum  for  thickening.  The  following  blue 
may  be  used  instead  of  the  solution  of  indigo.  The  mallow 
tint  is  given  by  adding  a  little  perchloride  of  tin  to  the  above 
formula,  and  leaving  out  the  blue. 

12.  Dark  blue. — Soluble  Prussian  blue ;  tartaric  acid  : 
alum,  thicken  with  gum. 

13.  Emerald  green. — One  quart  of  decoction,  equivalent 
to  1  pound  of  Persian  berries ;  1  quart  of  infusion  of  quercit- 
ron, of  spec.  grav.  1*027;  in  which  dissolve  12  ounces  of  alum 
in  powder  ;  and  add  6  ounces  of  the  following  blue  bath  for 
greens  ;  thicken  with  20  ounces  of  gum. 

14.  Blue  bath  for  greens.    Half  a  gallon  of  water  at  140° 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES.  589 

F.,  one  pound  of  soluble  Prussian  blue,  3  ounces  of  tartaric 
acid,  and  2  ounces  of  alum. 

I.  Printing  of  Silks. — Of  the  madder  style.  This  is  one 
of  the  most  difficult  to  execute,  requiring  much  skill  and  ex- 
perience. The  first  step  is  the  removal  of  the  gum.  A  cop- 
per being  nearly  filled  with  water,  the  pieces,  tied  up  in  a 
linen  bag,  are  put  into  it,  with  a  quarter  of  a  pound  of  soap 
for  every  pound  of  silk,  and  are  boiled  for  3  hours.  If  the 
silk  be  Indian,  half  an  ounce  of  soda  crystals  must  be  added. 
When  the  goods  are  taken  out,  they  are  rinsed  in  the  river, 
then  passed  through  water  at  140°  P.,  holding  8  ounces  of 
crystalized  soda  in  solution,  as  a  scourer.  They  are  next 
rinsed  in  cold  water,  and  steeped  in  water  very  faintly  acidu- 
lated with  sulphuric  acid,  during  4  hours,  then  rinsed,  and 
dried. 

Preparation  of  Mordants. — 1  gallon  of  boiling  water ;  2 
pounds  of  alum  ;  dissolve  : 

1  pound  of  acetate  of  lead  ;  4  ounces  of  sal  ammoniac  ;  1 
of  chalk  ;  mix  well  together  ;  after  decomposition  and  subsi- 
dence, draw  off  the  clear. 

1.  Red. — 1  gallon  of  the  above  mordant,  thickened  with 
14  ounces  of  starch,  and  tinged  with  decoction  of  Brazil-wood. 
If  dark  red  be  wanted,  dissolve,  in  a  gallon  of  the  above  red, 
4  ounces  of  sulphate  of  copper. 

2.  Black. — 1  gallon  of  iron  liquor,  of  1-056  spec.  grav. ; 
thicken  with  14  ounces  of  starch;  and  dissolve  in  the  hot 
paste  2  ounces  of  sulphate  of  copper. 

3.  Violet. — Take  1  gallon  of  iron  liquor  of  1*04  spec.  grav. ; 

2  ounces  of  cream  of  tartar  ;  2  ounces  of  nitre  ; 
2  ounces  of  copperas  ; 

1  ounce  of  alum :  dissolve,  and  mix  the  solu- 
tion with 

1  gallon  of  gum  water,  containing  6  lbs.  of 
gum. 

4.  Puce. — Half  a  gallon  of  red  mordant ;  half  a  gallon  of 

iron  liquor  of  1*07 ; 
7  ounces  of  starch  for  thickening  ;  color  with 
logwood. 


590 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


Manipulation  of  the  above  colors. — Print  on  the  black, 
then  the  puce,  next  the  violet,  and  lastly  the  red.  Dry  in  the 
hot  flue,  and  48  hours  after  the  impression,  wash  away  the 
paste.  The  copper  employed  for  dyeing  is  of  a  square  form : 
a  boil  is  given  with  bran,  at  the  rate  of  4  lbs.  per  piece  of  the 
foulards  :  cold  water  is  added  to  lower  the  temperature  to 
130°  P.  The  pieces  must  be  entered  with  the  printed  surface 
undermost,  and  winced  for  half  an  hour,  taking  care  to  keep 
them  expanded  and  well  covered  with  the  liquor :  they  are 
then  taken  out  and  rinsed.  When  grounds  are  to  be  made 
on  the  foulards,  2  ounces  of  sumach  must  be  added  per  piece. 

Maddering. — Suppose  48  pieces  are  to  be  grounded  with 
madder.  12  pounds  of  madder  must  be  put  into  the  copper, 
1  pound  of  sumach,  and  6  pounds  of  bran  ;  the  bath  must  be 
tepid  when  the  pieces  are  entered  :  it  must  be  heated  to  104° 
F,  20  minutes,  and  to  the  boiling  point  in  an  hour  aud  a  half. 
The  goods  must  be  briskly  winced  all  the  time,  and  finally 
turned  out  into  cold  water. 

When  they  come  out  of  the  madder  bath  they  are  much 
loaded  with  color.  They  are  cleared  by  a  boil  of  half  an  hour 
in  bran,  then  turned  out  into  cold  water,  and  rinsed.  A  bath 
must  be  now  prepared  with  3  pounds  of  soap,  1  ounce  of  solu- 
tion of  tin,  and  2  pailsful  of  bran,  in  which  the  goods  are  to 
be  boiled  for  half  an  hour,  rinsed,  and  passed  through  a  very 
dilute  sulphuric  acid  bath.  Then  rinse,  and  dry.  By  follow- 
ing this  process,  a  light  salmon  ground  is  obtained. 

II.  Steam  colors  upon  silk. — The  same  plan  of  operations 
may  be  adopted  here  as  is  described  for  calico-printing ;  the 
main  difference  being  in  the  method  of  mordanting  the  goods. 
After  boiling  in  soap  water,  in  the  proportion  of  4  ounces  per 
pound  of  silk,  the  goods  are  washed  in  cold  water,  then  in 
water  at  140°  ;  rinsed,  passed  through  weak  sulphuric  acid, 
rinsed,  squeezed  between  rollers,  and  steeped  in  a  bath  con- 
taining 8  ounces  of  alum  per  gallon,  for  four  hours  with  occa- 
sionally wincing.  They  are  now  rinsed  and  dried.  The 
subsequent  treatment  resembles  that  of  steam-color  printed 
cottons. 

Yellow. — Take  1  gallon  of  a  decoction,  made  with  4  lbs. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


591 


of  Persian  berries  :  dissolve  in  it  8  ounces  of  salt  of  tin  (muri- 
ate), and  4  ounces  of  the  nitro-muriatic  solution  of  tin.  Thick- 
en with  2  pounds  of  gum.* 

Black. — Take  a  gallon  of  decoction,  made  with  4  lbs.  of 
logwood,  with  which 
14  ounces  of  starch  are  to  be  combined  :  mix  in 
2  ounces  of  galls ;  boil,  and  pour  the  color  into  a 

pipkin  containing 
2  ounces  of  tartaric  acid  ;  2  ounces  of  oxalic  acid. 

both  in  powder,  and 
2  ounces  of  olive  oil.    Stir  the  color  till  it  is  cold, 
and  add 

8  ounces  of  nitrate  of  iron,  and  4  ounces  of  nitrate 
of  copper. 

Printing  of  foulard  pieces.  The  tables  which  serve  for 
the  impression  of  silk  goods  are  so  constructed  as  to  receive 
them  in  their  full  breadth.  Towards  the  part  between  the 
color  or  sieve  tub  and  the  table,  the  roller  is  mounted  upon 
which  the  piece  is  wound.  This  roller  A,  B,  fig.  425  has  a 
groove,  C,  cut  out  parallel  to  its  axis.  Fig.  42. 

Into  this  a  bar  is  pressed,  which  fixes   a    Bp 

the  end  of  the  piece.    The  head  B,  of  "I  —  Hp 

the  roller  is  pierced  with  several  holes,  in  which  an  iron  pin 
passes  for  stopping  its  rotation  at  any  point,  as  is  shown  at  B. 
At  the  other  end  of  the  table  there  is  placed  a  comb,  fig.  43, 
which  is  supported  by  pivots  A,  B,  at  Fig.  43. 

its  ends.  The  teeth  of  the  comb  are  Af  St? 
on  a  level  with  the  cloth. 

The  piece  is  arranged  for  printing  as  follows  : — It  is  un- 
wound, and  its  end  is  brought  upon  the  teeth  of  the  comb, 
and  made  to  pass  into  them  by  slight  taps  with  a  brush.  It 
is  now  stretched,  by  turning  round  the  roller,  and  fixing  it  by 
the  pin-handle.  After  tracing  the  outline,  the  printing  blocks 
are  applied.    Care  should  be  taken,  in  the  course  of  printing, 


*  Red,  violet,  lilac,  &c.,  are  the  same  as  for  steam-colors  upon  cotton.  Topical 
colors  are  also  applied  without  mordanting  the  silk  beforehand.  In  this  case  a 
little  muriate  of  tin  is  introduced. 

72 

i 


592 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


always  to  fix  the  teeth  of  the  comb  in  the  middle  line  be- 
tween two  handkerchiefs.  The  operation  of  grounding-in  is 
much  facilitated  by  this  plan  of  extension. 

The  pieces  are  washed  in  running  water,  and  must  be  ra- 
pidly dried.  The  subsequent  dressing  is  given  by  gum  traga- 
canth  :  they  are  dried  upon  a  stretching  frame,  and  then  fold- 
ed up  for  the  market. 

III.  Mandarining  of  silk  stuffs  and  chalys. — This  style 
of  printing  depends  upon  the  property  which  nitric  acid  pos- 
sesses of  giving  to  silk  and  woolen  goods  a  yellow  color. 

The  first  step  is  the  scouring  with  a  soap  boil,  as  already 
described. 

The  designs  are  prin ted-on  as  also  above  described. 
The  "  swimming"  or  color  tub  is  usually  double,  and  serves 
for  two  tables  ;  instead  of  being  placed  at  the  end  of  the  tabic, 
it  is  put  between  two,  and,  consequently,  behind  the  printer. 
It  is  formed  of  a  copper  chest,  fig.  44,  A,  B,  C,  D,  in  which 
Fig  44  steam  may  circulate,  introduced 

A    B        by  the  pipe,  I ;  the  excess  being 


allowed  to  escape,  as  also  the 
water  of  condensation.  The 
frame  is  placed  in  the  hollow 
box  K,  K.    Between  two  such 


frames  there  is  a  plate  of  copper,  L,  which  closes  the  box  ; 
it  serves  for  laying  the  plates  in  order  to  keep  them  hot.  At 
E,  and  H,  are  prolongations  of  the  box,  in  which  are  set  the 
vessels  P,  G,  for  holding  the  reserve  paste. 

Preparation  of  the  reserve  or  resist  paste. — Melt  in  a  ket- 
tle 2}  lbs.  of  rosin  ;  1  lb.  of  suet ;  mix  well,  and  put  it  into 
the  basins,  F,  G.  By  means  of  steam  the  reserve  is  kept 
melted,  as  well  as  the  false  color  upon  which  the  sieve  floats. 
The  piece  of  silk  being  laid  upon  the  table,  and  the  reserve 
spread  upon  the  frame,  the  printer  heats  his  block,  which 
should  be  mounted  with  lead,  if  the  pattern  will  permit,  upon 
the  little  table,  L.  He  takes  up  the  color  from  the  frame>  and 
transfers  it  instantly  to  the  piece.  He  must  strike  the  block 
lightly,  and  then  lift  it,  lest  by  its  cooling,  it  might  stick  to 
the  silk.    When  the  table  pattern  is  completed,  he  dusts  it 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


593 


Fig.  45. 


over  with  sand,  and  proceeds  to  another  portion  of  the  silk. 
-  The  piece  must  not  be  taken  out  of  the  stretch  till  it  is  quite 
dry,  which  requires  usually  6  hours.  Let  us  consider  first 
the  most  common  case,  that  of  a  white  upon  an  orange 
ground.  We  shall  afterwards  describe  the  other  styles, 
which  may  be  obtained  by  this  process.  The  piece,  being 
printed  and  dry,  must  next  be  subjected  to  the  mandarining 
operation. 

The  apparatus  here  employed  consists 
of  a  sandstone  trough,  ABCD,  fig.  45. 
Upon  the  two  sides,  A  C,  B  D,  of  this 
trough  are  fixed  two  wooden  planks, 
pierced  with  a  hole  an  inch  from  the  bot- 
tom to  receive  the  roller  E,  under  which 
the  piece  passes.  In  this  trough  the  acid 
mixture  is  put.  That  trough  is  put  into 
a  wooden  or  copper  trough,  F  G  H  I. 
Into  the  latter,  water  is  put,  which  is 
heated  by  means  of  steam,  or  a  conve- 
nient furnace.  Before  and  behind  are 
placed  two  winces,  or  reels,  K,  L  ;  one 
serves  to  guide  the  piece  in  entering  into 
the  trough,  and  the  other  in  its  leaving 
it.  The  piece  falls  immediately  into  a 
stream  of  cold  water,  or,  failing  that,  into  a  large  back,  con- 
taining a  mixture  of  chalk  and  water.  The  two  winces  are 
moved  by  handles  :  the  velocity  is  proportioned  to  the  action 
of  the  acid.  The  wince  L  ought  to  be  higher  than  K,  to 
allow  the  acid  to  drain  off.  Fig.  46  shows  a  section  of  the 
apparatus. 

The  temperature  of  the  acid  mixture  ought  to  be  main- 
tained between  95°  and  100°  F. ;  for  if  it  be  raised  higher,  the 
resist  would  run  the  risk  of  melting,  and  the  impression  would 
become  irregular  and  blotty. 

The  proportions  of  the  acid  mixture  are  the  following : — 
1  gallon  of  water;  and  1  gallon  of  nitric  acid,  of  spec, 
grav.  1-288,  which  may  be  increased  with  the  strength  of  the 
silk.    It  should  be  a  little  weaker  for  chalvs.    For  the  strong 

75 


Fig.  46. 


I 


594 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


greens  it  may  be  2  measures  of  acid  of  1*288  to  1  measure  of 
water.  The  duration  of  the  passage  through  the  acid  should 
be  1  minute  at  most. 

Mix  ture  of  orange  color ;  and  clearing-  away  of  the  resist. 
— The  goods,  on  coming  out  of  the  mandarining  apparatus, 
are  rinsed  in  running  water ;  then  boiled  in  soap  water,  quick- 
ened with  a  little  soda,  at  the  rate  of  2  lbs.  of  the  former  and 
4  oz.  of  the  latter  for  a  piece  of  30  yards.  They  must  be 
worked  by  the  wince  for  half  an  hour.  They  are  now  rinsed 
in  cold  water,  then  passed  through  hot,  again  rinsed,  and 
dried.  We  shall  give  some  examples  of  the  mode  of  manu- 
facture, which  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  curious  appli- 
cations of  chemical  ingenuity. 

I.  Orange  ground  with  white  figures. 

I.  Print-on  the  fat  reserve ;  2.  mandarine ;  3.  brighten  the  orange,  and  clear. 

II.  Orange  ground  with  blue  figures. 

I.  Dip  in  the  indigo  vat  as  for  calico ;  2.  print-on  the  fat  resist  to  preserve  the 
blue  ;  3.  mandarine ;  4.  clear,  and  brighten  the  orange  by  the  boil. 

III.  Orange  ground,  with  blue  and  white  figures. 

1.  Print-on  the  resist  to  preserve  the  white;  2.  dip  in  the  vat,  rinse,  and  dry; 

3.  ground-in  the  fat  resist  to  preserve  the  blue ;  4.  mandarine ;  5.  cleanse,  and 
brighten. 

IV.  Full  green  ground,  and  white  figures. 

1.  Print-on  the  resist;  2.  mandarine,  and  rinse  without  drying ;  3.  dip  in  the 
blue  vat ;  4.  cleanse,  and  brighten. 

V.  Full  green  ground,  and  blue  figures. 

1.  Dip  a  pale  blue,  rinse,  and  dry;  2.  print-on  the  fat  resist;  3.  mandarine, 
wash  and  dry;  4.  dip  full  blue;  5.  clean,  and  brighten. 

VI.  Full  green  ground,  with  white  and  blue  figures. 

1.  Print-on  the  resist ;  2.  dip  a  pale  blue,  and  dry  ;  3.  ground-in  the  fat  resist; 

4.  mandarine  and  rinse;  5.  dip  a  full  blue;  6.  clean,  and  brighten. 

VII.  Full  green  ground,  with  white,  blue,  and  orange 
figures. 

1.  Print-on  the  fat  reserve;  2.  dip  a  pale  blue,  and  dry;  3.  ground-in  the  re- 
serve; 4.  mandarine,  rinse,  and  dry;  5.  ground-in  the  reserve;  6.  dip  a  full 
blue;  7.  clean,  and  brighten. 

If  blue  grounds  with  white  figures  be  wanted,  the  resist 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


595 


must  be  applied,  and  then  the  goods  must  be  dipped  in  the 
blue  vat :  the  resist  is  afterwards  removed  by  a  boil  in  soap- 
water. 

The  above  processes  are  applicable  to  chalys. 

The  property  which  nitric  acid  possesses  of  staining  animal 
matters  yellow,  such  as  the  skin,  wool,  and  silk,  is  here  ap- 
plied to  a  very  elegant  purpose. 

Of  the  bronze  or  solitaire  style  by  mandarining. — The 
mandarining  mixture  is 

1  gallon  of  nitric  acid,  of  1*17  spec.  grav.  ;  mixed  with  3 
pints  of  solution  of  nitrate  of  iron,  of  spec.  grav.  1-65.  If  the 
quantity  of  nitrate  of  iron  be  increased,  a  darker  tint  will  be 
obtained.  The  temperature  of  the  mixture  should  be  94°  P. 
The  pieces,  after  mandarining,  are  let  fall  into  water,  and 
steeped  for  an  hour. 

In  order  to  raise  the  bronze,  and  clear  away  the  fat  resist, 
the  goods  must  be  boiled  in  a  bath  of  soap  and  soda,  as  de- 
scribed for  orange. 

I.  Bronze  ground,  with  ivhite  figures. 

] .  Print-on  the  fat  resist ;  2.  dip  in  the  blue  vat,  and  dry ;  3.  pad  in  a  decoction 
of  logwood,  of  4  lbs.  per  gallon ;  dry,  taking  care  to  turn  over  the  selvages ; 
4.  mandarine,  and  steep  in  water  for  an  hour ;  5.  cleanse,  and  pass  through  soap. 

II.  Bronze  ground,  with  bine  figures. 

1.  Dip  in  the  blue  vat,  and  dry;  2.  print-on  the  fat  resist;  3.  pad  in  the  above 
decoction  of  logwood,  and  dry;  4.  mandarine,  and  steep  an  hour;  5.  cleanse, 
and  brighten. 

III.  Bronze  ground,  with  white  and  blue. 

1.  Print-on  the  fat  resist;  2.  dip  in  the  blue  vat,  and  dry;  3.  ground-in  the  fat 
resist ;  4.  pad  in  the  logwood  liquor,  and  dry ;  5.  mandarine,  and  steep  for  an 
tour;  6.  cleanse,  and  give  the  brightening  boil  with  soap. 

This  style  of  manufacture  may  be  executed  on  chalys  ;  and 
is  capable  of  producing  beautiful  effects,  which  will  in  vain 
be  sought  for  by  other  means. 

With  silks,  advantage  may  be  derived  from  various  metal- 
lic solutions  which  possess  the  property  of  staining  animal 
substances  ;  among  which  are  nitrate  of  silver,  nitrate  of 
mercury,  and  muriate  of  iron.  The  solutions  of  these  salts 
may  be  thickened  with  gum,  and  printed-on. 


596 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


An  orange  upon  an  indigo  vat  ground. — After  the  blue 
ground  has  been  dyed,  orange  figures  may  be  produced  by 
printing-on  the  following  discharge  paste  : — 

1  gallon  of  water,  made  into  a  paste  with  1  pound  of  starch ;  when  cold,  add 
to  it  from  16  to  24  ounces  of  nitric  acid,  of  spec.  grav.  1-288. 

An  orange  upon  a  Prussian-blue  ground. — The  dye  is 
first  given  by  Prussian  blue  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  then  the 
following  discharge  is  printed-on  : — 

A  caustic  ley  being  prepared,  of  1086  specific  gravity,  dissolve  in  a  gallon  of  it 
i  pounds  of  annotto,  and  thicken  with  3  pounds  and  a  quarter  of  gum.  Two 
days  after  the  impression  of  this  paste,  pass  the  goods  through  steam,  and  wash 
them  in  running  water.  With  these  two  designs,  the  logwood  and  gall-black,  for- 
merly described,  may  be  associated,  to  produce  a  rich  effect. 

Stains* — When  stains  are  produced  by  mordants  upon 
spots  where  no  color  is  to  come,  the  operator  must,  before 
dunging  the  goods,  apply  a  little  lime-juice,  or  tartaro-oxalic 
acid  discharge  paste,  to  the  place.  If  the  stains  are  not  per- 
peived  till  after  the  maddering,  it  will  then  be  necessary  to 
apply  to  them  first  a  strong  solution  of  chloride  of  lime,  with 
a  pencil,  next  a  solution  of  oxalic  acid  (mixed  with  a  little 
muriatic  acid)  writh  another  pencil,  and  immediately  afterward 
wash  with  water.  All  madder  stains  will  be  effaced  by  this 
means. 

Rust  stains  are  removeable  by  a  mixture  of  oxalic  and 
muriatic  acids. 

Indigo  stains  by  the  combined  action  of  chloride  of  lime 
and  muriatic  acid. 

Topical  yellow  stains,  or  yellow  dyes,  by  the  same  combi- 
nation. 

Metallic  greens  and  Scheele's  green  by  the  muriatic  acid 
alone. 

Chrome  green  and  Prussian  blue. — The  blue  may  be 
taken  out  by  a  caustic  alkali,  after  which  the  goods  must  be 
washed  :  the  residuary  rust  stain  may  be  removed  by  a  mix- 
ture of  oxalic  and  muriatic  acids.    The  above  methods  refei 


*  See  chapter  IV.,  Part  V. 

t  After  fixing  tht  color  by  steam,  the  orange  is  brightened  with  a  soap  boil. 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES.  597 

to  cotton  and  linen.  The  stains  on  silk  and  woolen  stuffs 
should  be  removed  before  fixing  the  colors  by  the  soap  boil ; 
which  may  generally  be  done  by  scratching  with  the  finger, 
with  the  aid  of  a  little  water. 

Clouding  or  Chineing. — The  art  of  clouding  silk  has  been 
practiced  in  France  since  the  year  1510,  when  it  was  first 
introduced  into  Lyons  by  an  Italian  weaver,  but  until  lately 
has  ever  been  conducted  in  a  very  rude  manner. 

The  technical  term  to  "  cloud,"  denotes  the  partial  coloring 
of  the  threads  previously  to  their  being  woven,  producing  an 
irregular,  speckled  appearance,  or  assuming  a  more  definite 
design,  but  always  characterized  by  a  softened,  shaded,  or 
irregular  outline. 

In  1839  a  process,  then  in  active  operation  at  Lyons,  was 
introduced  into  England  by  Mr.  G.  T.  Kemp,  which  after- 
wards proved  to  be  nearly  identical  with  that  described  in  Mr. 
Walon's  patent,  taken  out  in  1825.  In  1840,  and  following 
years,  the  process  was  very  generally  applied  to  the  manufac- 
ture of  broad  silks,  ribands,  shawls,  and  other  articles  of  silk, 
as  also  to  mixed  fabrics  of  cotton,  linen,  and  wool. 

The  process  is  as  follows  : — The  warp,  generally  white,  is 
"  beamed  on"  and  "  twisted  in,"  in  the  usual  way.  The  silk, 
as  stretched  in  the  loom,  is  then  carefully  "picked,"  or  cleared 
from  rough,  or  hairy,  threads,  and  other  imperfections.  A 
firm  heading,  or  "  tab,"  about  two  inches  in  width,  is  first 
woven,  after  which  a  small  rod  is  introduced  into  the  shed,  for 
the  purpose  of  attaching  the  warp  to  the  "cloth  beam." 
"  Cross-strings"  are  then  woven  in,  to  enable  the  workman  to 
twist  the  warp  in  with  facility  after  being  printed.  The 
weaver  next  proceeds  to  draw  about  12  inches  of  the  warp 
through  the  harness,  and  weaves  a  strip  of  plain  cloth,  con- 
taining about  80  picks,  or  shots,  to  the  inch.  After  winding 
about  12  inches  of  the  warp  on  the  cloth  roller,  he  repeats  the 
strip  of  plain  cloth,  continuing  the  process,  picking  or  clear- 
ing the  warp  throughout,  until  the  whole  warp  has  been  thus 
prepared,  the  end  of  which  he  secures  with  a  firm  heading,  as 
at  the  beginning.  If  a  fine  and  delicate  pattern  is  required, 
the  interval  of  12  inches  cannot  be  exceeded  with  safety ;  but 


598 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


when  the  pattern  is  large,  and  the  outline  irregular,  a  longer 
space  may  be  left  between  the  strips.  The  cloth  roller,  which 
need  not  be  more  than  three  inches  in  diameter,  must  have 
wooden  or  cast-iron  heads,  to  support  the  warp  when  it  begins 
to  rise  on  the  beam.  It  is  important  here  to  remark,  that  the 
warping  and  beaming  should  be  performed  in  the  best  man- 
ner, and  the  picking,  or  clearing,  the  warp  very  carefully 
watched,  as  it  is  obvious  that  mending  any  threads  after  the 
printing,  must  inevitably  injure  the  work. 

The  object  of  forming  the  temporary  fabric,  just  described, 
is  to  keep  the  threads  of  the  warp  in  their  proper  positions 
during  the  subsequent  operations  of  printing,  steaming,  wash- 
ing, drying,  and  weaving. 

The  cloth  roller  with  the  warp  thereon  being  delivered  to 
the  printer,  he  affixes  it  in  a  frame,  in  which  it  is  supported 
horizontally  on  its  axis  ;  he  then  draws  off  a  sufficient  length 
of  the  partially  woven  warp,  which  is  passed  over  the  printing 
table,  at  the  end  of  which  it  is  attached  to  two  parallel  lengths 
of  tape,  about  fifteen  yards  long,  which  pass  over  a  series  of 
rollers  to  an  empty  beam,  which  may  be  termed  the  printer's 
beam,  to  which  they  are  attached,  and  which  is  placed  near 
to,  and  above  the  cloth  roller,  so  as  to  enable  the  printer,  at 
the  same  time,  to  let  off  the  necessary  length  of  warp  from 
the  cloth  roller,  and  wind  a  corresponding  length  upon  the 
printer's  beam,  as  the  printing  of  the  warp  proceeds. 

When  extended  over  the  table,  the  warp  is  printed  with 
blocks  in  the  ordinary  manner,  being  kept  close  down  to  the 
surface  of  the  table,  by  means  of  the  roller  at  each  end,  under 
which  the  warp  passes,  and  which  rollers  are  capable  of  being 
raised  or  depressed,  as  circumstances  require.  The  printing 
table  is  covered  with  a  blanket,  surmounted  with  an  oiled  or 
painted  cover,  between  which  and  the  warp,  a  piece  of  calico 
is  spread,  of  which  a  fresh  length  must  be  substituted  every 
time  a  table-length  of  the  warp  has  been  printed.  The  ne- 
glect of  this  would  cause  the  superfluous  color,  received  by 
the  calico,  to  smear  the  warp. 

Each  table-length  of  warp,  when  printed,  is  liberated  from 
the  table  by  raising  the  moveable  rollers,  and  is  then  drawn 


CALICO  PRINTING  PROCESSES. 


599 


by  the  tapes  to  the  printers  beam.  During  this  passage,  of 
about  fifteen  yards  in  length,  as  before  stated,  a  sufficient 
time  is  given  for  drying,  to  prevent  any  smearing,  or  marking 
off,  when  rolled  on  the  printer's  beam.  To  assist  the  drying, 
a  certain  degree  of  artificial  heat,  with  good  ventilation,  is 
maintained. 

The  warp,  thus  printed,  is  wound  off  the  printer's  beam,  and 
formed  into  a  large  "  skein-ball,"  of  from  eight  to  ten  feet  in 
circumference,  and  next  undergoes  the  operation  of  steaming 
to  fix  the  coloring  matter,  great  care  being  taken  to  prevent 
any  condensation  of  moisture  on  the  silk. 

It  is  then  thoroughly  washed  in  a  stream  of  cold  water,  to 
remove  the  extraneous  coloring  matter,  and  also  the  thicken- 
ing ingredients  with  which  the  color  is  mixed.  During  wash  - 
ing,  the  silk  is  protected  by  a  covering  of  loose  canvass  in 
which  it  is  sewn  up. 

After  drying  the  warp  is  given  to  the  weaver  to  be  rewoven 
into  the  ultimate  figured  cloth  required.  In  winding  the  warp 
again  on  the  warp  roller,  the  ordinary  means  of  spreading  it, 
by  passing  it  through  a  coarse  "  ravel,"  or  "  wraith,"  are  in- 
applicable, on  account  of  the  strips  of  cloth  which  have  been 
woven  across  it ;  the  process,  however,  is  readily  effected  by 
stretching  these  strips  to  their  full  extent,  and  thus  guiding  it 
on  with  the  hand.  The  weaver  now  pursues  the  ordinary 
method  of  manufacturing  the  web,  drawing  out  as  he  pro- 
ceeds, the  weft  which  had  been  woven  in,  to  form  the  small 
strips  of  cloth  before  mentioned. 

GILDING  SILKEN  FABRICS  BY  CHEMICAL 
MEANS. — Some  years  ago  the  Society  for  the  Encour- 
agement of  Arts,  at  Berlin,  offered  a  reward  of  several 
thousand  francs  to  any  person  who  should  succeed  in  gild- 
ing silken  threads  by  chemical  means,  in  such  a  manner 
that  the  gilding  shall  be  solid  (i.  e.  not  liable  to  wear  off  easi- 
ly), and  not  only  not  deterioated,  as  regards  its  wear,  but  in 
a  fit  state  to  be  woven  in  the  same  manner  as  metallic  wires. 

Although  the  experiments  made  for  this  purpose  have  com- 
pletely failed,  as  far  as  regards  the  gilding  of  threads,  yet 
Dr.  Bretthager  succeeded  in  obtaining  upon  silken  fabrics  a 


600 


DYEING  AND  CALICO  PRINTING. 


very  splendid  coat  of  gilding.  As  regards  the  choice  of  fabric 
to  be  gilt,  the  preference  should  be  given  to  those  of  the  most 
uniform  texture  and  glossy  appearance.  The  manner  of 
operating  is  as  follows  : — ■ 

1.  Dyeing  of  the  silk. — This  operation  is  performed  with 
an  aqueous  solution  of  chloride  of  gold,  which  must  not  con- 
tain the  least  portion  of  free  acid.  A  chlorate  of  gold,  per- 
fectly free  from  acid,  is  prepared  in  the  following  manner  : — 

A  quantity  of  gold  (a  ducat  for  example)  is  dissolved  in  aqua  regia,  which  con- 
sists of  a  mixture  of  two  parts  of  chlorhydric  acid,  and  one  part  of  nitric  acid  of 
commerce ;  the  liquor  is  carefully  decanted  from  the  precipitated  chlorate  of  silver, 
and  evaporated  to  dryness  at  a  gentle  heat;  the  residuum  is  a  chlorate  of  gold, 
containing  no  free  acid.  It  is  then  dissolved  again  in  pure  water,  and  this  solution 
is  used  for  the  dyeing  process,  and  which  must  be  effected  at  a  boiling  heat. 

2.  Bringing  out  the  metallic  lustre. — This  is  effected  by 
means  of  phosphohydric  gas.    The  process  is  as  follows  : — 

This  fabric  is  brought  in  a  damp  state,  into  an  atmosphere  highly  charged  with 
the  gas.  During  the  operation  the  fabric  must  be  kept  damp,  and  the  gas  allowed 
to  disengage  itself  freely.  Although  the  fabric  must  not  be  dry,  it  should  not  bo 
so  wet  as  to  allow  the  water  to  run  therefrom,  as  the  pellicle  of  gold  would  be 
carried  away  by  the  infiltration  of  the  water,  thus  causing  flaws  and  defects ;  the 
action  of  the  gas  must  consequently  be  prolonged,  as  the  operation  takes  effect 
first  upon  the  surface  of  the  fabric ;  and  the  coating  of  gold,  thus  formed,  creates 
an  obstacle  to  the  action  of  the  gas  in  the  interior.  The  chloride  of  gold  remain- 
ing in  the  fabric  becomes  ultimately,  by  the  action  of  the  light,  of  a  purple  or  violet 
color,  and  thus  injures  the  gilding.  In  order  to  avoid  this,  it  is  necessary,  besides 
the  phosphoretted  hydrogen,  which  is  present  in  sufficient  quantity,  to  introduce 
steam  into  the  chamber  or  box  where  the  fabric  is  spread  out  in  the  manner 
most  favorable  to  the  operation,  by  which  means  the  requisite  degree  of  dampness 
is  kept  up.  Under  the  chamber  is  placed  a  vessel,  of  suitable  size,  with  a  large 
opening  for  the  escape  of  the  gas  contained  therein,  and  to  prevent  the  introduc- 
tion of  any  extraneous  matters  it  may  contain  into  the  chamber ;  a  plate  of  metal 
is  placed  at  a  short  distance  above  the  opening,  and  at  one  side  of  the  chamber  the 
necessary  apparatus  for  injecting  steam  therein  is  fixed. 

As  soon  as  the  disengagement  of  the  gas  commences,  a 
slight  metallic  lustre  appears  upon  the  silk,  which  gradually 
augments  until  all  the  gold  is  brought  out. 


APPENDIX. 


A. 

ACCIDENTAL  COLORS.— Colors  depending  on  some  affection  of 
the  eye,  and  not  belonging  to  light  itself,  or  any  quality  of  the  luminous 
object.  If  we  look  for  a  short  time  steadily  with  one  eye  upon  any 
bright-colored  spot,  as  a  wafer  on  a  sheet  of  paper,  and  immediately 
after  turn  the  same  eye  to  another  part  of  the  paper,  a  similar  spot  will 
be  seen,  but  of  a  different  color.  If  the  wafer  be  red,  the  imaginary  spot 
will  be  green ;  if  black,  it  will  be  changed  into  white ;  the  color  thus  ap- 
pearing being  always  what  is  termed  the  complementary  color  of  that  on 
which  the  eye  was  fixed. 

ACETATE. — Any  saline  compound  of  which  the  acetic  is  the  acid 
constituent ;  as  acetate  of  soda,  of  iron,  of  copper,  &c. 

ACETATE  OF  ALUMINA.— (See  Red  Liquor;  also  Mordants, 
chapter  I,  Part  III.) 

ACETATE  OF  LEAD  (sugar  of  lead)  may  be  obtained  by  expo- 
sing metallic  lead  to  the  action  of  acetic  acid,  either  as  a  liquid  or  as  a 
vapor,  and  to  the  air :  a  portion  of  the  acid  is  decomposed,  and  carbonate 
of  lead  is  formed,  which  is  then  easily  decomposed  by  another  portion  of 
the  acid  ;  the  latter  combining  with  the  lead,  forms  acetate  of  lead,  and 
the  carbonic  acid  is  evolved. 

Acetate  of  lead  is  prepared  for  extensive  purposes  by  a  variety  of 
modes.  The  first  we  mention,  is  to  immerse  a  number  of  sheets  of  lead 
in  vinegar,  so  arranged  that  the  uppermost  sheets  are  exposed  to  the  ac- 
tion of  the  air.  When  they  become  covered  with  the  crust  of  carbonate, 
they  are  shifted  to  the  bottom  of  the  vat,  where  the  acid  decomposes  the 
carbonate  and  forms  acetate,  while  the  succeeding  sheets  are  being  ex- 
posed to  the  same  course  of  action. 

Another  process  is  to  expose  sheets  of  lead  to  the  vapors  of  vinegar  : 
the  carbonate  formed  is  collected  and  immersed  in  strong  vinegar.  In 
both  these  processes,  when  the  acid  appears  to  be  saturated,  or  when  it 

76 


602 


ACE. 


[appendix, 


ceases  to  decompose  the  carbonate,  the  solution  is  drawn  into  proper  ves- 
sels and  allowed  to  crystalize.* 

Another  process  for  preparing  acetate  of  lead  is  to  dissolve  litharge  in 
strong  vinegar  to  saturation.  This  is  done  by  gradually  sprinkling  the 
litharge  in  a  vessel  of  vinegar  subjected  to  a  boiling  heat ;  the  vinegar  is 
kept  stirring,  to  prevent  the  adhesion  of  the  litharge  to  the  bottom  and 
sides  of  the  boiler.  "When  a  sufficient  quantity  is  dissolved,  a  moderate 
quantity  of  cold  water  is  poured  into  the  solution,  reducing  it  a  little  be- 
low the  boiling  point,  and  then  it  is  allowed  to  settle ;  the  clear  fluid  is 
drawn  oft*  into  a  separate  vessel  and  allowed  to  crystalize.  If  the  solu- 
tion be  colored,  it  is  whitened  by  filtration  through  bone  black.  Common 
unrectified  wood  vinegar  or  pyroligneous  acid,  is  much  used  for  the  prep- 
aration of  acetate  of  lead  for  the  dye-work.  It  is  known  in  the  dyehouse 
by  the  appellation  of  brown  sugar. 

Basic  salts  or  sub-acetates,  are  made  by  boiling  common  acetate  of 
lead  with  litharge.  The  tri-basic  acetate,  a  combination  of  three  of  lead 
to  one  of  acid,  is  the  best  salt  for  dyeing  orange,  deep  yellow,  and  amber. 
It  is  prepared  in  the  dye-house  by  boiling  a  solution  of  sugar  of  lead 
with  litharge,  and  adding  to  this  a  little  lime.  The  proportions,  how- 
ever, vary  in  different  dyehouses.  Those  which  should  be  employed  to 
produce  the  tri-basic  acetate,  are  six  parts  of  crystalized  acetate  of  lead, 
eight  of  litharge,  and  thirty  of  water,  boiled  till  the  litharge  is  dissolved. 
The  addition  of  lime  causes  a  loss,  as  the  lime  combines  with  part  of  the 
acetic  acid  forming  acetate  of  lime,  which,  if  these  proportions  have  been 
used,  would  prevent  some  of  the  litharge  from  being  dissolved.  If  the 
mixture  be  not  long  enough  boiled,  or  if  the  proportion  of  litharge  be  too 
small,  the  adoption  of  lime  insures  the  conversion  of  the  acetate  of  lead 
vresent  into  the  tri-basic  state,  though  it  is  to  be  observed,  that  this  will  be 
at  the  expense  of  a  portion  of  the  lead  intended  for  producing  the  color. 
We  have  experienced  much  annoyance  from  this  source  ;  and  it  is  well 
known  in  the  trade,  that  when  the  lead  is  hastily  prepared  for  orange,  it 
is  a  cause  of  great  anxiety,  and  the  color  obtained  is  frequently  defective. 
As  this  is  rather  an  important  point  in  the  economy  of  the  dyehouse,  we 
shall  explain  our  view  of  the  matter.  If  the  proportions  recommended 
above  be  used,  the  following  is  the  result :  and  we  must  bear  in  mind 
that  while  the  oxide  of  lead  forms  the  basis  of  the  dye,  the  acid  merely 


*  Stoneware  vessels,  with  salt  glaze,  answer  best  for  crystalizers.  Their  edges  should  be 
smeared  with  candle-grease,  to  prevent  the  salt  creeping  over  them  by  efflorescent  vegetation. 
The  crystals  are  to  be  drained,  and  dried  in  a  stove-room  very  slightly  heated.  It  deserves 
remark,  that  linen,  mats,  wood,  and  paper,  imbued  with  sugar  of  lead,  and  strongly  dried, 
readily  take  fire,  and  burn  away  like  tinder.  When  the  mother  waters  cease  to  afford  good 
crystals,  they  should  be  decomposed  by  carbonate  of  soda,  or  by  lime  skilfully  applied,  when 
a  carbonate  or  an  oxide  will  be  obtained,  fit  for  treating  with  fresh  vinegar.  The  supernatan 
acetate  of  soda  may  be  employed  for  the  extraction  of  pure  acetic  acid 


APPENDIX.]  ACI.  603 

holds  the  lead  in  solution.  The  six  pounds  of  acetate  of  lead  is  composed 
of  four  lbs.  oxide  of  lead,  and  two  lbs.  acetic  acid ;  but  when  the  eight 
pounds  of  litharge  is  dissolved  or,  as  dyers  say,  taken  up,  the  tri-basic 
salt  will  consist  of  12  lbs.  of  oxide  of  lead  and  2  lbs.  of  acetic  acid ;  that 
is,  every  ounce  of  acid  holds  in  solution  twelve  ounces  of  oxide  of  lead. 
Now,  if  a  little  lime,  as  we  have  often  remarked,  be  put  in  along  with 
the  litharge,  the  result  will  be  as  follows  :  Suppose  that  50  lbs.  of  cotton 
is  to  be  dyed  orange,  and  that  it  consumed  the  6  lbs.  acetate  of  lead  pre- 
pared as  now  stated,  to  give  it  a  good  color.  If  1\  ounces  of  lime  be 
mixed  in,  it  will  combine  with  three  ounces  of  acid :  in  this  way  36 
ounces  of  oxide  of  lead  is  not  taken  up,  and  is  therefore  ineffective  in  the 
production  of  the  color ;  while  at  the  end  of  the  process,  the  dyer  is  sur- 
prised to  find  his  color  poor.  We  may  notice  that  lead  in  the  basic  state 
is  not  held  in  combination  by  a  very  great  affinity,  and  thus  a  very  little 
counteractive  influence  precipitates  it.  The  presence  of  sulphates  or 
carbonates  in  the  water,  which  almost  all  water  contains,  precipitates 
the  lead  ;  hence  the  reason  that  when  the  clear  acetate  solution  is  poured 
into  a  tub  of  water,  the  contents  become  milk-white  by  the  formation  ot 
an  insoluble  carbonate.  This  is  all  lost  for  the  time  being,  as  it  is  ren- 
dered insoluble  and  useless  as  a  dye.  Ever}'  ounce  of  carbonate  renders 
useless  5  ounces  of  lead.  The  softest  water  should  be  used  for  the  lead 
solution,  as,  for  example,  the  condensed  steam  from  an  engine. 

ACIDIMETRY"  may  be  exactly  performed  by  measuring  in  the  cylin- 
dric  gasmeter  the  volumes  of  carbonic  acid  gas  disengaged  from  pure 
bicarbonate  of  potash  or  soda,  by  a  given  weight  of  any  acid,  taking  care 
to  use  a  small  excess  of  the  salt.  Thus,  for  example,  16-8  grains  of  dry 
and  20  f-  of  hydrated  sulphuric  acid  disengage  10,000  water  grain  mea- 
ures  of  gas  from  bicarbonate  of  potash.  Therefore,  if  20f  grains  of  a 
given  sulphuric  acid  be  poured  into  the  flask  of  fig.  47,  upon  about  50 
grains  of  the  bicarbonate,  powdered  and  covered  with  a  little  water,  it 
will  cause  the  evolution  of  a  volume  of  gas  proportioned  to  its  strength. 
If  the  acid  be  pure  oil  of  vitriol,  that  weight  of  it  will  disengage  10,000 
grain  measures  of  gas  ;  but  if  it  be  weaker,  so  much  less  gas — the  centi- 
grade measures  of  which  will  denote  the  per-centage  value  of  the  acid. 
If  the  question  be  put,  how  much  dry  acid  is  present  per  cent,  in  a  given 
sulphuric  acid,  then  16-8  grains  of  the  acid  under  trial  must  be  used : 
and  the  resulting  volume  of  carbonic  acid  gas  on  the  scale  will  denote 
the  per-centage  of  dry  acid.* 


*  For  nitric  acid,  we  should  take  22  6  grains  ;  for  hydrochloric  or  muriatic  acid,  15*34 ;  for 
acetic  acid,  216 ;  for  citric  acid,  24-6  ;  for  tartaric  acid,  28  grains  ;  then  in  each  case  we  shall 
obtain  a  volume  of  carbonic  acid  gas  proportioned  to  the  strength  and  purity  of  these  acids 
respectively.  The  nitric,  hydrochloric,  and  acetic  acids  are  referred  to  in  their  anhydrous 
state  ;  the  tartaric  and  citric  in  their  crystaline. 

t  \ 


604 


ACI. 


[appendix. 


Fig.  47. 


A,  is  a  cylinder  two  inches  in  diameter,  and  14  inches 
long.  It  contains,  as  above  stated,  10,000  grains  of 
water  in  the  graduated  portion  ;  O,  or  zero  being  at 
the  top.  It  has  a  tubulure  in  the  side  close  to  the  bot- 
tom, through  the  cork  of  which  a  short  tube  passes 
tight,  and  is  connected  to  a  collar  of  Indian  rubber,  E, 
which  serves  for  a  joint  to  the  upright  tube,  B,  resting 
near  its  open  upper  end  in  a  hooked  wire.  Through  the 
cork  in  the  mouth  of  the  cylinder,  the  taper  tail  of  the 
flask,  C,  passes  air-tight.  The  small  tube,  F,  open  at 
both  ends,  is  cemented  at  bottom  into  the  tail  of  C,  and 
rises  to  the  shoulder  of  the  flask.  The  cork  of  C,  is 
perforated,  and  receives  air-tight  the  taper  tube,  D, 
which  can  also  be  closed  with  the  stopcock. 

The  new  German  method  of  acidimetry  consists  in 
determining  how  much  carbonic  acid  gas  is  disengaged 
from  a  standard  bicarbonate  of  soda,  by  a  given  weight 
of  any  acid.  The  twin  flask  represented  in  fig.  48,  is 
used. 

A,  must  have  a  capacity  of  from  two  ounces  to  2h 
ounces  of  water;  it  is  advisable  that  B  should  be  a 
little  smaller,  say  of  a  capacity  of  about  1  to  1J 
ounces.  Both  flasks  are  closed  by  means  of  doubly 
perforated  corks.     These  perforations  serve  for  the 


Fig.  48. 


reception  of  the  tubes,  a,  c,  and  d.  c, 
is  a  tube  bent  twice  at  right  angles,  which 
enters  at  its  one  end  just  into  the  flask,  A, 
but  descends  at  its  other  end,  near  to  the 
bottom  of  B.  These  tubes  are  open  at 
both  ends  when  operating ;  except  the  top 
end,  &,  of  the  tube,  a,  which  is  closed  by 
means  of  a  pellet  of  wax.  The  substance 
to  be  examined  is  weighed  and  put  into  the 
flask,  A,  into  which  water  is  then  poured 
to  the  extent  of  one-third  of  its  capacity. 
B,  is  filled  with  common  English  sulphuric 
acid  to  about  half  its  capacity,  and  a  suffi- 
cient quantity  of  soda  is  put  into  a  test- 
tube,  which  is  suspended  upright  with  a  silk 
thread  fastened  by  the  pressure  of  the  cork 
to  the  mouth  of  the  flask.  On  letting  the  thread  loose,  the  test-tube 
falls,  and  the  cork  being  instantly  replaced,  the  whole  gas  evolved  is 
forced  to  pass  through  the  sulphuric  acid  in  B,  and  there  to  deposit  its 
moisture. 


APPENDIX.] 


ALU. 


605 


ACIDULATED. — Tinged  with  an  acid ;  made  slightly  sour. 

ADULTERATION. — The  debasing  of  any  product  of  manufacture, 
especially  chemical,  by  the  introduction  of  cheap  materials.  The  art  of 
ascertaining  the  genuineness  of  the  several  products  used  by  dyers,  calico- 
printers,  &c,  is  described  under  the  specific  objects  of  manufacture  in  the 
body  of  the  work. 

AFFINITY. — The  chemical  term  denoting  the  peculiar  attractive 
force  which  produces  the  combination  of  dissimilar  substances ;  such  as 
of  an  alkali  with  an  acid,  or  of  sulphur  with  a  metal.* 

ALIZARINE. — From  Ali-zari,  the  commercial  name  of  madder  in 
the  Levant;  a  peculiar  coloring  principle  obtained  from  madder. — (See 
chapter  III,  Part  I,  article  Madder.) 

ALKALI. — A  class  of  chemical  bodies,  distinguished  chiefly  by  their 
solubility  in  water,  and  their  power  of  neutralizing  acids,  so  as  to  form 
saline  compounds.  The  alkalies  of  manufacturing  importance  are,  am- 
monia, potash,  soda,  and  quinia.  These  alkalies  change  the  purple  color 
of  red  cabbage  and  radishes  to  a  green,  the  reddened  tincture  of  litmus  to 
a  purple,  and  the  color  of  turmeric  and  many  other  yellow  dyes  to  a  brown. 
Even  when  combined  with  carbonic  acid,  the  first  three  alkalies  exercise 
this  discoloring  power,  which  the  alkaline  earths,  lime,  and  barytes,  do 
not.  The  same  three  alkalies  have  an  acrid,  and  somewhat  urinous  taste ; 
the  first  two  are  energetic  solvents  of  animal  matter ;  and  the  three  com- 
bine with  oils,  so  as  to  form  soaps.  They  unite  with  water  in  every  pro- 
portion, and  also  with  alcohol ;  and  the  first  three  combine  with  water 
after  being  carbonated. 

ALKALIMETER. — An  instrument  for  measuring  the  alkaline  force 
or  purity  of  any  of  the  alkalies  of  commerce.  It  is  founded  on  the  prin- 
ciple, that  the  quantity  of  real  alkali  present  in  any  sample,  is  propor- 
tional to  the  quantity  of  acid  which  a  given  weight  of  it  can  neutralize. 

ALKANA,  is  the  name  of  the  root  and  leaves  of  Lausania  inermis, 
which  have  been  long  employed  in  the  East,  to  dye  the  nails,  teeth,  hair, 
garments,  &c.  The  leaves  ground  and  mixed  with  a  little  limewater, 
serve  for  dyeing  the  tails  of  horses  in  Persia  and  Turkey. 

ALKANET,  the  root  of  (Anchusa  tinctoria.)  A  species  of  bugloss, 
cultivated  chiefly  in  the  neighborhood  of  Montpelier.  It  affords  a  fine 
red  color  to  alcohol  and  oils ;  but  a  dirty  red  to  water.  Its  principal  use 
is  for  coloring  ointments,  cheeses,  and  pommades.  The  spirituous  tincture 
gives  to  white  marble  a  beautiful  deep  stain. 

ALUM. — In  the  alum  works  on  the  Yorkshire  coast,  8  different  liquors 
are  met  with.  1st.  "  Raw  liquor."  The  calcined  alum  shale  is  steeped  in 
water  till  the  liquor  has  acquired  a  specific  gravity  of  9  or  10  penny- 
weights, according  to  the  language  of  the  alum-maker. 

*  See  Equivalents  Chemical. 


606 


ALU. 


[appendix. 


2d.  "  Clarified  Liqour."  The  raw  liquor  is  brought  to  the  boiling  point 
in  lead  pans,  and  suffered  to  stand  in  a  cistern  till  it  has  cleared  :  it 
is  then  called  clarified  liquor.  Its  gravity  is  raised  to  10  or  11 
pennyweights. 

3d.  "  Concentrated  Liquor."  Clarified  liquor  is  boiled  down  to  about 
20  pennyweights.  This  is  kept  merely  as  a  test  of  the  comparative 
value  of  the  potash  salts  used  by  the  alum-maker.* 

4th.  "  Alum  Mother  Liquor."  The  alum  pans  are  fed  with  clarified 
liquor  which  is  boiled  down  to  about  25  or  30  pennyweights,  when  a 
proper  quantity  of  potash  salt  in  solution  is  mixed  with  it,  and  the 
whole  run  into  coolers  to  crystalize.  The  liquor  pumped  from  these 
rough  crystals  is  called  "  alum  mothers." 

5th.  "  Salts  Mothers."  The  alum  mothers  are  boiled  down  to  a  crys- 
talizing  point,  and  afford  a  crop  of  "  Rough  Epsom,"  which  is  a  sul- 
phate of  magnesia  and  protoxide  of  iron. 

6th  and  7th.  "  Alum  Washings,"  The  rough  crystals  of  alum  (No.  4), 
are  washed  twice  in  water,  the  first  washing  being  about  4  penny- 
weights, the  second  about  g|,  the  difference  in  gravity  being  due  to 
mother  liquor  clinging  to  the  crystals. 

8th.  "  Tun  Liquor."  The  washed  crystals  are  now  dissolved  in  boil- 
ing water,  and  run  into  the  "  roaching  tuns"  (wood  vessels  lined  with 
lead)  to  crystalize.  The  mother  liquor  of  the  "  roach  alum"  is  called 
"  tun  liquor;"  it  is,  of  course,  not  quite  so  pure  as  a  solution  of  roach 
alum  in  water. 

ALUMINA. — When  a  solution  of  ammonia  is  dropped  into  a  solution 
of  alum,  a  white  precipitate  falls,  which,  thoroughly  washed,  dried,  and 
heated,  is  pure  aluminous  earth.  There  are  two  properties  of  this  earth 
which  render  it  of  great  importance  in  the  arts ;  one  is,  that  it  forms  a 
plastic  mixture  with  water,  and,  though  it  is  not  the  predominant  ingre- 
dient, yet  it  confers  the  valuable  property  of  plasticity  upon  all  natural 
clays,  which  enables  them  to  be  moulded  into  the  various  forms  of  pot- 
tery and  earthenware ;  the  other  is  the  remarkable  affinity  of  alumina 
for  coloring  and  extractive  matter,  whence  its  use  in  the  arts  of  dyeing 
and  calico-printing. — (See  Mordants,  chapter  I.,  Part  III.) 

ALUMINA TE  OF  POTASH.— Another  preparation  of  alumina 
much  employed  as  a  mordant  for  cotton  goods,  is  the  solution  of  alumina 
in  caustic  potash,  known  as  the  aluminate  of  potash.  The  following 
method  of  preparing  this  solution  is  recommended  by  M.  Kcechlin- 
Schouch : — 


*  The  alum-maker  tests  his  samples  of  potash  salts  comparatively  by  dissolving  equa 
weights  of  the  different  samples  in  equal  measures  of  alum  liquor  at  20  pennyweights,  heated 
to  the  boiling  point,  and  weighing  the  quantity  of  alum  crystals  produced  on  cooling. — (Sen 
chapter  I,  Part  III.) 


APPENDIX.]  ALU.  607 

A  solution  of  caustic  potash  is  first  made  by  boiling  for  half  an  hour  a  mixture  of  eighty 
pounds  of  carbonate  of  potash,  thirty-two  pounds  of  quick-lime,  and  forty  gallons  of  water. 
The  caustic  ley  being  allowed  to  settle,  thirty  gallons  are  decanted  and  evaporated  down  to 
the  density  35°  Baumo  (60°  Twaddell),  and  60  pounds  of  powdered  alum  are  added  to  the 
boiling  liquid.   As  the  solution  cools,  a  quantity  of  sulphate  of  potash  is  deposited  in  crystals. 

When  a  piece  of  cloth  impregnated  with  the  aluminate  of  potash  is 
suspended  freely  in  the  air,  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  atmosphere  seizes 
upon  the  caustic  potash  which  holds  the  alumina  in  solution,  causing  the 
formation  of  carbonate  of  potash  and  precipitation  of  alumina.  If  the 
apartment  in  which  cottons  printed  with  the  aluminate  of  potash  are 
suspended  is  imperfectly  ventilated,  after  a  short  time  not  a  trace  of  car- 
bonic acid  can  be  detected  in  the  atmosphere  by  the  ordinary  test  of  lime- 
water  ;  hence  the  necessity  of  paying  particular  attention  to  the  means 
of  producing  a  proper  ventilation  in  the  "hanging"  or  "  ageing"  room,  if 
the  complete  precipitation  of  the  alumina  during  that  stage  of  the  process 
is  required. 

The  time  of  hanging  the  mordanted  goods,  however,  is  seldom  pro- 
longed sufficiently  to  allow  of  the  complete  decomposition  of  the  alumi- 
nate of  potash.  This  is  insured  by  afterward  passing  the  cloth  through 
a  dilute  solution  of  muriate  of  ammonia,  which  immediately  determines 
the  complete  precipitation  of  the  alumina.  The  reactions  which  take 
place  when  a  solution  of  aluminate  of  potash  is  mixed  with  a  solution  of 
muriate  of  ammonia  are  expressed  in  the  following  diagram : — 


Aluminate   (  Alumina 

of  potash    j  Potash  5  p7gen- 
l(  Potassium 


Alumina        ....  free. 

water. 


Muriate  of  {  M™'    \  Hydrogen  . 

ammonia    i  a         I  ^*"onne    chloride  of  potassium. 

(  Ammonia       ....  free. 


The  aluminate  of  soda  may  be  prepared  in  the  same  manner  and  used 
for  the  same  purposes  as  aluminate  of  potash.  It  is  said  that  no  differ- 
ence is  perceptible  between  the  effects  obtained  by  aluminate  of  potash, 
and  those  by  aluminate  of  soda. 

The  other  simple  preparations  of  alumina  which  are  occasionally  used 
as  mordants  are,  nitrate  of  alumina,  chloride  of  aluminum,  and  tartrate 
of  alumina.  Of  these,  the  most  extensively  employed  is  the  nitrate, 
which  may  be  prepared  of  sufficient  purity  for  the  use  of  the  dyer  and 
calico-printer  by  mixing  concentrated  solutions  of  equal  weights  of  alum 
and  nitrate  of  lead,  when  sulphate  of  lead  is  formed  and  precipitated,  and 
nitrate  of  alumina  remains  in  solution.* — (See  Bed  Liquor.) 


*  Parnell. 


608 


ANH. 


[appendix. 


AMMONIA. — This  important  compound  is  chiefly  produced  artificial- 
ly. It  exists,  combined  with  acids,  in  some  of  the  saline  products  of 
volcanos,  and,  in  very  small  quantities,  it  is  discoverable  in  sea-water. 
The  salts  of  ammonia  are  distinguished  as  a  class,  by  being  all  volatile, 
or  decomposable  by  a  strong  heat.  If  the  acid  with  which  this  base  is 
combined  be  volatile,  the  salt  will  be  sublimed  without  change ;  but  if  it 
be  fixed,  the  ammonia  will  fly  off,  and  the  acid  remain.  Their  taste  is, 
in  general,  hot  and  biting ;  and  they  all  emit  the  well-known  smell  of  the 
volatile  alkali,  when  mixed  with  caustic  lime.  Ammonia  in  its  purest 
state,  is  a  highly  pungent  gas,  possessed  of  all  the  mechanical  properties 
of  the  air,  but  very  condensable  with  water.  It  consists  of  3  volumes  of 
hydrogen  and  1  of  azote  condensed  into  two  volumes  ;  and  hence  its  den- 
sity is  0*591,  atmospheric  air  being  1*000.  By  strong  compression  and 
refrigeration  it  may  be  liquefied  into  a  fluid,  whose  specific  gravity  is 
0-76  compared  to  water  1*000. — (See  Sal  Ammoniac.) 

ANALYSIS. — In  chemistry,  this  term  is  applied  to  the  resolution  of 
compound  bodies  into  their  elements.  It  is  either  qualitative  or  quantita- 
tive. Qualitative  analysis  consists  in  the  determination  of  the  component 
parts,  merely  as  respects  their  nature,  and  without  reference  to  their  rel- 
ative proportions :  it  is  an  imperfect,  and  often  a  very  easy  operation, 
as  compared  with  quantitative  analysis,  by  which  we  determine  not 
merely  the  components  of  a  compound,  but  their  relative  proportions  :  to 
effect  this,  much  scientific  skill  and  practical  dexterity  are  required,  more 
especially  in  the  identification  of  new  substances.  The  theory  of  definite 
proportionals,  or  the  Atomic  Theory,  as  it  is  usually  called,  has  materi- 
ally facilitated  many  analytical  processes,  and  is  especially  valuable  in 
furnishing  an  unerring  test  or  criterion  of  the  general  accuracy  of  the 
results. 

In  reference  to  chemical  analysis  generally,  but  more  especially  as  re- 
gards organic  products,  we  often  employ  the  terms  proximate  and  ulti- 
mate analysis  :  the  former  referring  to  the  immediate  combinations  which 
form  the  subject  of  experiment ;  the  latter  to  their  final  resolutions  into 
elementary  principles.  Thus,  in  regard  to  sulphate  of  lime,  it  is  resolved 
by  proximate  analysis  into  sulphuric  acid  and  lime,  and  these  are  called 
its  proximate  elements ;  but  sulphuric  acid  is  itself  a  compound  of  oxy- 
gen and  sulphur ;  and  lime,  of  oxygen  and  calcium  ;  oxygen,  sulphur, 
and  calcium,  therefore,  are  the  results  of  the  ultimate  analysis  of  sul- 
phate of  lime  ;  and  there  are  many  theoretical  points  in  chemistry  de- 
pendent upon  the  views  which  are  taken  of  the  various  groupings  of  these 
ultimate  principles.  Wheat  flour  is  a  compound  of  starch  and  gluten  ; 
starch  is  compounded  of  oxygen,  hydrogen,  and  carbon ;  and  gluten,  of 
the  same  elements  with  the  addition  of  nitrogen ;  so  that  the  ultimate 
components  of  wheat,  are  oxygen,  hydrogen,  carbon,  and  nitrogen. 

ANHYDROUS. — Without  water;  a  term  frequently  applied  to  gases. 


APPENDIX.] 


ARS. 


609 


salts,  alcohol,  acids,  and  some  other  substances,  to  express  their  existence 
in  the  dry  state. 

AREOMETER  OF  BAUME.— This  scale  is  much  used  by  the 
French  authors.  The  following  table  shows  the  Specific  Gravity  Num- 
bers corresponding  with  Baume's  Areometric  Degrees  : — 


Liquids  denser  than  Water. 

Less  dense  than  Water. 

De- 

Specific 

|  De- 

Specific 

De- 

Specific 

De- 

Specific 

De- 

Specific 

grees 

gravity. 

grees. 

gravity. 

grees. 

gravity. 

grees. 

gravity. 

grees. 

gravity. 

0 

1-0000 

26 

1-2063 

52 

1-5200 

10 

1  0000 

36 

0-8488 

1 

1  0066 

27 

1-2160 

53 

1-5353 

11 

0-9932 

37 

0-8439 

z 

9Q 
Zo 

J  ZZ'On 

l  ODJ.U 

U  ifOOO 

*3ft 
oo 

n.ooni 
U  oo9 1 

Q 
O 

i  -non* 

90 
Zi) 

1  ZoDO 

OD 

1  DO  / 1 

lo 

0-Q7QQ 

*3Q 

ov 

n.QQ/iQ 

A 

1  VZ  IV) 

•30 
t)U 

1  -VA^Q 
L  ZiOxf 

oo 

1  DOOO 

1 1 

0Q7QQ 
U  V  i  oo 

Aft 

n.QOQPi 

o 

i  (Y\Aft 

1  UO-iU 

Ol 

1  -9^fi9 
i  ^DO^ 

p»7 

1  DUUU 

10 

u  vuxxd 

41 

U  oZ^d 

6 

10411 

32 

1-2667 

58 

1-6170 

16 

0-9605 

42 

0-8202 

i 

x  v±oo 

oo 

1  -977*3 
I  Z  i  to 

OJ 

1  -P^AA 

1  7 
1 1 

0-0^49 

U  VO^t/ii 

A1 
to 

U  olob 

Q 
O 

1  UJJO 

1A 

1 -9ftft  1 

uu 

1  .fi^99 

1ft 

AA 

U  ol  11 

q 

1  0630 

oo 

1-2992 

61 

i  -£70^ 

i.  O  /  UJ 

1Q 

0  9420 

19 

U  OUOO 

1  -0704. 

ov 

1  OLIJO 

fi9 

1 -fiftftQ 

90 
Z\J 

AO. 

nft099 

11 

1-0780 

37 

1-3217 

63 

1-7079 

21 

0-9300 

47 

0-7978 

12 

1  0857 

38 

1-3333 

64 

1-7273 

22 

09241 

48- 

0-7935 

13 

1  0935 

39 

13451 

65 

1-7471 

23 

0-9183 

49 

0-7892 

14 

11014 

40 

1-3571 

66 

1-7674 

24 

0-9125 

50 

0-7849 

15 

11095 

41 

1-3694 

67 

1-7882 

25 

0-9068 

51 

0-7807 

16 

11176 

42 

1-3818 

68 

1-8095 

26 

0-9012 

52 

0-7766 

17 

1-1259 

43 

1-3945 

69 

1-8313 

27 

0-8957 

53 

0-7725 

18 

11343 

44 

1-4074 

70 

1-8537 

28 

0-8902 

54 

0-7684 

19 

11428 

45 

1-4206 

71 

1-8765 

29 

0-8848 

55 

0-7643 

20 

11515 

46 

1-4339 

72 

1-9000 

30 

0-8795 

56 

0-7604 

21 

1-1603 

47 

1-4476 

73 

1-9241 

31 

0-8742 

57 

0-7656 

22 

1-1692 

48 

1-4615 

74 

1-9487 

32 

0-8690 

58 

0-7526 

23 

11783 

49 

1-4758 

75 

1-9740 

33 

08639 

59 

0-7487 

24 

1-1875 

50 

1-4902 

76 

2-0000 

34 

0-8588 

60 

0-7449 

25 

1-1968 

51 

1-4951 

35 

0-8538 

61  | 

0-7419 

ARSENIATE  OF  POTASH  is  prepared,  in  the  small  way,  by  ex- 
posing to  a  moderate  heat  in  a  crucible,  a  mixture  of  equal  parts  of  white 
arsenic  and  nitre  in  powder.  After  fusion,  the  crucible  is  to  be  cooled  ; 
the  contents  being  dissolved  in  hot  water,  and  the  solution  filtered,  will 
afford  regular  crystals  on  cooling,  According  to  M.  Berzelius,  they  are 
composed  of  arsenic  acid,  63-87  \  potash,  26*16  \  and  water,  9-97.  It  is 
an  acidulous  salt,  and  is  hence  usually  called  the  biarseniate,  to  denote 
that  its  composition  is  2  atoms  of  arsenic  acid,  and  1  of  potash.  This 
article  is  prepared  upon  the  great  scale,  in  Saxony,  by  melting  nitre  and 
arsenious  acid  together  in  a  cylinder  of  cast-iron.    A  neutral  arseniate 

77 


610 


BIS. 


[appendix. 


also  is  readily  formed,  by  saturating  the  excess  of  acid  in  the  above  salt 
with  potash  ;  it  does  not  crystalize. 

ARSENIC. — White  arsenic  dissolves  in  the  alkalies,*  and  combines 
with  the  metallic  oxides,  forming  a  class  of  salts  called  arsenites,  an  ex- 
ample of  which  has  just  been  given  above.    They  are  all  poisonous. 

ASTRINGENTS. — The  principal  vegetable  astringents,  are  de- 
scribed in  chapter  II.,  Part  III.,  under  the  head  of  Tannin  and  Gallic 
Acid.    See  also  Mordants,  chapter  I.  of  the  same  Part. 

ATOMIC  WEIGHTS  or  ATOMS,  are  the  primal  quantities  in 
which  the  different  objects  of  chemistry,  simple  or  compound,  combine 
with  each  other,  referred  to  a  common  body,  taken  as  unity.  Oxygen  is 
assumed  by  some  philosophers,  and  hydrogen  by  others,  as  the  standard 
of  comparison.  Every  chemical  manufacturer  should  be  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  the  combining  ratios,  which  are,  for  the  same  two  sub- 
stances, not  only  definite,  but  multiple  ;  two  great  truths,  upon  which 
are  founded  not  merely  the  rationale  of  his  operations,  but  also  the  means 
of  modifying  them  to  useful  purposes.  The  discussion  of  the  doctrine  of 
atomic  weights,  or  prime  equivalents,  belongs  to  pure  chemistry ;  but 
several  of  its  happiest  applications  are  to  be  found  in  the  processes  of  art, 
as  pursued  upon  the  greatest  scale. — (See  Equivalents  and  Affinity.) 

B. 

BASE. — By  a  base  is  meant  an  alkili,  or  a  metallic  oxide  which  has 
a  tendency  to  unite  with  an  acid  and  thus  form  a  salt.  Thus,  potash  is 
the  base  of  nitre,  or  nitrate  of  potash  ;  oxide  of  lead  is  the  base  of  sugar 
of  lead,  or  acetate  of  lead ;  soda  is  the  base  of  sulphate  of  soda ;  and 
sodium  is  the  metallic  base  of  soda.  Hence  the  distinction  into  salifiable 
and  metallic  bases. 

BISMUTH  is  white,  and  resembles  antimony,  but  has  a  reddish  tint; 
whereas  the  latter  metal  has  a  bluish  cast.  It  is  brilliant,  crystalizes 
readily  in  small  cubical  facets,  is  very  brittle,  and  may  be  easily  reduced 
to  powder.  Its  specific  gravity  is  9.83 ;  and  by  hammering  it  with  care, 
the  density  may  be  increased  to  9.8827.  It  melts  at  480°  Fahr.,  and 
may  be  cooled  6  or  7  degrees  below  this  point  without  fixing  ;  but  the 
moment  it  begins  to  solidify,  the  temperature  rises  to  480°,  and  continues 
stationary  till  the  whole  mass  is  congealed.  When  heated  from  32°  to 
212°,  it  expands  in  length.  When  pure  it  affords  a  very  valuable 
means  of  adjusting  the  scale  of  high-ranged  thermometers.  At  strong 
heats  bismuth  volatilizes,  may  be  distilled  in  close  vessels,  and  is  thus 
obtained  in  crystaline  lamina?.  The  nitrate  of  bismuth,  mixed  with  solu- 
tion of  tin  and  tartar,  has  been  employed  as  a  mordant  for  dyeing  lilac 
and  violet  in  calico-printing. 


APPENDIX.] 


BRA. 


611 


BLUE  VITRIOL  (Blue-Stone  or  Sulphate  of  Copper),  is  prepared 
from  the  sulphuret  in  the  same  way  as  sulphate  of  iron,  or  copperas, 
which  see/  Its  principal  use  in  the  dye-house  is  for  dyeing  Scheele's 
green.  This  color  is  produced  by  boiling  the  cloth  in  a  mixture  of  arse- 
nious  acid  and  sulphate  of  copper,  then  passing  it  through  an  alkaline  ley, 
or  more  commonly  lime  water,  and  so  on  alternately.  Superior  processes 
might  be  had  recourse  to  for  producing  the  same  color  ;  and  indeed  com- 
mon humanity  would  dictate  the  complete  abandonment  of  the  process 
just  described,  as  in  several  instances,  the  handling  of  goods  dyed  to  this 
shade  of  green  has  terminated  fatally. — See  page  272,  Princes'  patent. 

BRAN. — The  husky  portion  of  ground  wheat,  separated  by  the  bolter 
from  the  flour.  It  is  advantageously  employed  by  calico-printers,  in 
the  clearing  process,  in  which,  by  boiling  in  bran-water,  the  coloring  mat- 
ters adhering  to  the  non-mordanted  parts  of  maddered  goods,  as  well  as 
the  dun  matters  which  cloud  the  mordanted  portions,  are  removed.  A 
valuable  series  of  researches  concerning  the  operation  of  bran  in  such 
cases  was  made  a  few  years  ago  by  that  distinguished  chemist  and  calico- 
printer,  M.  Daniel  Koechlin  Schouch,  and  published  in  the  ninth  number 
of  the  Bulletin  de  la  Societe  Industrielle  de  Mulhausen.  Nine  sets  of 
experiments  are  recorded,  which  justified  the  following  conclusions  : — 

1.  The  dose  of  two  bushels  of  bran  for  10  pieces  of  calico  is  the  best,  the  ebullition  being 
kept  up  for  an  hour.  A  boil  for  the  same  time  in  pure  water  had  no  effect  in  clearing  either 
the  grounds  or  the  figures. 

2.  Fifteen  minutes  boiling  are  sufficient  when  the  principal  object  is  to  clear  white  grounds, 
but  in  certain  cases  thirty  minutes  are  requisite  to  brighten  the  dyed  parts.  If,  by  increasing 
the  charge  of  bran,  the  time  of  the  ebullition  could  be  shortened,  it  would  be  in  some  places, 
as  Alsace,  an  economy  ;  because  for  the  passage  of  ten  pieces  through  a  copper  or  vat  heated 
with  steam,  1  cwt.  of  coal  is  consumed  in  fuel,  which  costs  from  2>£  to  3  francs,  while  two 
bushels  of  bran  may  be  bought  for  one  franc. 

3.  By  increasing  the  quantity  of  water  from  12  to  24  hectolitres  with  two  bushels  of  bran, 
the  clearing  effect  upon  the  ten  pieces  was  impaired.  It  is  therefore  advantageous  not  to  use 
too  much  water. 

4.  Many  experiments  concur  to  prove  that  flour  is  altogether  useless  for  the  clearing  boil, 
and  that  finer  bran  is  inferior  for  this  purpose  to  the  coarser. 

5.  The  white  ground  of  the  calicoes  boiled  with  wheat  bran,  are  distinguishable  by  their 
superior  brightness  from  that  of  those  boiled  with  rye  bran,  and  especially  with  barley  bran  ; 
the  latter  having  hardly  any  effect. 

6.  There  is  no  advantage  in  adding  soap  to  the  bran  boil ;  though  a  little  potash  or  soda 
may  be  properly  introduced  when  the  water  is  calcareous. 

7.  The  pellicle  of  the  bran  is  the  most  powerful  part,  the  flour  and  the  starch  are  of  no  use 
in  clearing  goods,  but  the  mucilage  which  forms  one-third  of  the  weight  of  the  bran  has  con- 
siderable efficacy,  and  seems  to  act  in  the  following  way.  In  proportion  as  the  mucilaginous 
substance  dissolves  the  coloring  and  tawny  matters  upon  the  cloth,  the  husky  surface  attracts 
and  fixes  upon  itself  the  greater  part  of  them.  Accordingly,  when  used,  bran  is  digested  in  a 
weak  alkaline  bath,  it  gives  up  the  color  which  it  had  absorbed  from  the  cloth. 

The  following  chemical  examination  of  bran  is  interesting  : — 

A  pound  of  bran  was  boiled  at  successive  times  with  water ;  the  decoctions,  being  filtered, 
let  fall  in  cooling  a  greyish  deposit,  which  was  separated  by  decantation.   The  clear  liquor 


612 


CAR. 


[appendix. 


afforded  by  evaporation  to  dryness  four  ounces  of  a  brownish,  brittle  matter,  composed  chiefly 
of  mucilage,  a  little  gluten,  and  starch. 

The  gray  deposit  of  the  above  filtered  liquor  amounted  to  half  an 
ounce.  Nine  ounces  of  the  cortical  portion  of  the  bran  were  obtained. 
The  loss  amounted  to  2£  ounces,  being  in  some  measure  the  hygrometric 
water  of  the  bran  itself.* 

BRITISH  GUM. — The  trivial  name  given  to  starch,  altered  by  a 
slight  calcination  in  an  oven,  whereby  it  assumes  the  appearance  and  ac- 
quires the  properties  of  gum,  being  soluble  in  cold  water,  and  forming  in 
that  state  a  paste  well  adapted  to  thicken  the  colors  of  the  calico-printer. 
(See  the  articles  Starch  and  Gum.) 

c. 

CARBONATES. — Saline  compounds  in  definite  proportions  of  car- 
bonic acid,  with  alkalies,  earths,  and  the  ordinary  metallic  oxides. 

The  carbonates  principally  used  in  the  arts  and  manufactures  are  those 
of  ammonia,  copper,  iron,  lead,  lime,  magnesia,  potash,  soda.  Native 
carbonate  of  copper  is  the  beautiful  green  mineral  called  Malachite. 

Carbonates  are  easily  analyzed  by  estimating  either  by  weight  or 
measure  the  quantity  of  carbonic  acid  which  they  evolve  under  the  de- 
composing action  of  somewhat  dilute  sulphuric,  nitric,  or  muriatic  acid  ; 
for  as  they  are  all  compounds  of  acid,  and  base  in  equivalent  proportions, 
the  quantity  of  acid  will  indicate  the  quantity  of  base.  Thus,  as  pure 
limestone  consists  of  56  of  lime  and  44  of  acid,  in  100  parts,  if  upon  ex- 
amining a  sample  of  limestone  we  find  it  to  give  out  only  22  per  cent,  of 
carbonic  acid  gas,  during  its  slow  solution  in  muriatic  acid,  we  are  sun* 
that  there  are  only  28  parts  of  lime  present. 

CARBONATE  OF  AMMONIA.— A  salt  called  in  modern  chemistry 
sesqui-carbonate,  to  denote  its  being  composed  of  one  and  a  half  equiva- 
lent primes  of  carbonic  acid,  and  one  of  ammonia.  It  consists  by  Dr. 
Ure's  analysis,  of  55*89  carbonic  acid,  28-86  ammonia,  and  15-25  water, 
in  100  parts.  It  is  generally  prepared  by  mixing  from  1|  to  1£  parts  of 
well-washed  dry  chalk,  with  1  of  sal-ammoniac,  introducing  the  mixture 
into  an  earthen  or  cast-iron  retort,  or  subliming  pot,  and  exposing  it  to  a 
heat  gradually  raised  to  redness.  By  double  decomposition,  the  ammo- 
nia is  volatilized  in  combination  with  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  chalk,  and 
the  vapors  are  received  in  a  condensing  receiver  made  either  of  glass, 
stone  ware,  or  lead.    The  chlorine  of  the  sal-ammoniac  remains  in  the 


*  When  boiled  with  distilled  water,  goods  are  cleared  pretty  well  without  bran.  Certain 
delicate  dyes  must  be  boiled  only  a  few  minutes  in  a  strong  decoction  of  bran  previously 
made. —  Ure. 


APPENDIX.] 


CHE. 


613 


retort,  associated  with  the  basis  of  the  chalk  in  the  state  of  chloride  of 
calcium.    Some  ammonia  gas  escapes  during  the  process. 

The  saline  mass  thus  sublimed  is  purified  by  a  second  sublimation  in 
glass  or  salt-gla/.ed  earthen  vessels.  The  salt  may  be  obtained,  by  the 
above  method  carefully  conducted,  in  rhomboidal  octahedrons,  but  it  is 
generally  made  for  the  market  in  a  compact  semi-crystaline  white  cake. 
It  has  a  pungent  ammoniacal  smell;  a  hot,  pungent,  alkaline  taste;  a 
strong  alkaline  reaction,  and  dissolves  in  two  parts  of  cold  water.  It 
must  be  kept  in  well-closed  vessels,  as  by  exposure  to  the  air  a  portion  of 
its  ammonia  exhales,  and  it  passes  into  the  state  of  the  scentless  bicarbo- 
nate.— (See  Sal  Ammoniac.) 

CALCINATION. — The  reduction  of  substances  to  cinder  or  ash. 
The  term  is  derived  from  the  Latin  word  calx,  quick-lime,  which,  as  is 
well  known,  is  prepared  by  the  action  of  heat  upon  limestone ;  and  hence 
the  old  chemists  employed  the  word  calcination  to  express  any  supposed 
analogous  change,  metallic  substances  being  apparently  converted  into 
earthy  matter  by  calcination. 

CALCIUM. — The  metallic  base  of  lime,  discovered  in  1808  by  Davy. 
This  substance  has  hitherto  been  obtained  in  such  small  quantities,  that 
its  properties  have  not  been  accurately  investigated.  It  is  probably  a 
brilliant  white  metal,  highly  inflammable,  and  more  than  twice  as  heavy 
as  water.  Combined  with  oxygen  it  forms  lime,  which  consists  of  20  cal- 
eium-f-8  oxygen=28  lime. — (See  Bleaching,  chapter  I.,  Part  II.) 

CARBURETS. — In  chemistry,  the  generic  term  for  compounds  of 
carbon  with  the  simple  combustibles. 

CAUSTIC. — Any  chemical  substance  corrosive  of  the  skin  and  flesh  ; 
as  potash,  called  common  caustic,  and  nitrate  of  silver,  called  lunar  caus- 
tic, by  surgeons. 

CHALK. — A  friable  carbonate  of  lime,  white,  opaque,  soft,  dull,  or 
without  any  appearance  of  polish  in  its  fracture.  Its  specific  gravity 
varies  from  2*4  to  2-6.  It  usually  contains  a  little  silica,  alumina,  and 
oxide  of  iron.  It  may  be  purified  by  trituration  and  elutriation.  The 
silicious  and  ferruginous  matters  subside  first,  and  the  finer  chalky  parti- 
cles floating  in  the  supernatant  liquid,  may  be  decanted  with  it,  and  ob- 
tained by  subsidence.  When  thus  purified,  it  is  called  whitening  and 
Spanish  white.  Pure  chalk  should  dissolve  readily  in  dilute  muriatic 
acid,  and  the  solution  should  afford  no  precipitate  with  water  of  ammo- 
nia.— (See  Steatite.) 

CHEMISTRY. — Chemistry  is  a  department  of  science,  the  objects 
of  which  are  to  investigate  the  nature  and  properties  of  the  elements  of 
matter,  and  their  mutual  actions  and  combinations ;  to  ascertain  the  pro- 
portions in  wjiich  they  unite,  and  the  modes  of  separating  them  when 
united  ;  and  to  inquire  into  the  laws  and  powers  which  preside  over  and 
affect  these  agencies. 


614 


CHL. 


[appendix. 


CHLORATES. — Combinations  of  chloric  acid  with  salifiable  bases. 
Of  these  salts  the  chlorate  of  potash  is  best  known.  Chlorate  of  potash 
consists  of  76  chlorine  acid-(-43  potassa=124  of  the  chlorate. 

CHLORIDES. — Combinations  of  chlorine,  corresponding  with  the 
oxides.  Common  salt  is  a  chloride  of  sodium ;  that  is,  a  binary  com- 
pound of  chlorine  and  sodium.  Where  there  are  two  chlorides  of  the 
same  base,  the  relative  proportions  of  chlorine  in  them  are  almost  invari- 
ably as  1  to  2  ;  hence  the  terms  protochloride  and  bichloride.  Calomel 
and  corrosive  sublimate  are  the  protochloride  and  bichloride  of  mercury. 
The  latter  is  frequently  termed  perchloride.  In  calomel  200  of  mercury 
are  combined  with  36  of  chlorine,  and  in  corrosive  sublimate  with  twice 
36  or  72. 

CHLORIDE  OF  LIME.— The  manufacture  of  chloride  of  lime  is 
of  great  importance,  and  is  carried  on  upon  a  large  scale.  For  its  prep- 
aration, see  chapter  I.,  Part  II. 

CHLORINE.* — This,  in  a  separate  state,  and  under  ordinary  circum- 
stances, is  a  greenish-yellow  gas ;  but  when  submitted  to  a  pressure  of 
four  atmospheres,  it  becomes  a  yellow  transparent  liquid.  The  gas,  if 
breathed  undiluted,  is  fatal  to  animal  life ;  yet  it  does  not  extinguish  flame  ; 
on  the  contrary,  various  bodies,  when  immersed  in  it,  take  fire  spontane- 
ously. A  candle  burns  in  it  with  a  red  flame  ;  and  a  piece  of  phospho- 
rus introduced  into  it  burns  with  a  pale  white  light.  Copper,  tin,  zinc, 
arsenic,  and  antimony,  when  introduced  into  it  in  thin  leaves,  or  reduced 
to  filings,  take  fire,  and  combining  with  the  gas  form  compounds  analo- 
gous to  the  oxides,  and  which  are  therefore  named  chlorides.  Mercury 
also  enters  rapidly  into  combination  with  it,  forming  chloride  of  mercury ; 
a  substance  better  known  as  corrosive  sublimate  (which  see).  "Water  ab- 
sorbs twice  its  bulk  of  the  gas,  and  the  solution  is  called  chlorine-water. 
If  this  solution  be  exposed  to  the  sun's  light  it  is  observed  to  give  off  oxy- 
gen, and  after  a  time  it  is  found  that  the  solution  has  attained  acid  pro- 
perties :  that  it  has  lost  the  astringent  taste  which  it  originally  possessed, 
and  has  attained  instead  of  this  and  other  properties,  the  particular  pro- 
perties of  the  acid  popularly  known  as  spirit  of  salt,  and  which,  it  is 
plain  from  this  simple  experiment,  must  consist  of  chlorine  and  hydrogen 
in  combination. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  properties  of  chlorine  is  its  power  of  de- 
stroying all  vegetable  colors.  If  a  vegetable  blue — for  instance  the  blue 
infusion  of  red-cabbage — be  exposed  to  its  action,  the  color  is  not  altered 
to  red,  as  it  would  be  by  an  acid,  nor  to  green,  as  it  would  be  by  an  alkali, 
but  is  totally  destroyed  ;  and  the  medium  in  which  the  blue  was  con- 
tained, appears  colorless,  at  least  so  far  as  the  vegetable  was  concerned. 
On  this  account  chlorine  has  been  introduced  as  a  powerful  agent  in  the 


*  From  a  Greek  word  signifying  "  green"  from  its  color. 


APPENDIX.] 


CHL. 


615 


art  of  bleaching.  Thus  if  unbleached  linens  be  properly  exposed  to  its  ac- 
tion, the  matter  which  gives  them  their  gray  color  is  decomposed,  and 
the  linen  assumes  the  whiteness  which  is  natural  to  its  fibres.  However, 
if  applied  in  its  pure  state,  and  not  sufficiently  diluted,  chlorine  attacks 
the  vegetable  fibre,  and  invariably  destroys  the  strength  and  texture  of 
the  linen,  and  therefore  it  is  a  dangerous  agent  in  the  hands  of  the  inex- 
perienced. To  render  it  more  safe  and  convenient  of  application,  it  is 
always  tempered  by  the  quiescent  affinity  of  some  alkaline  base,  as  pot- 
ash, soda,  or  lime.  A  weak  solution  of  caustic  potash,  or  soda  saturated 
with  the  gas,  affords  a  "  bleaching  liquor,"  which  is  still  used  by  some 
bleachers  and  calico  printers  in  their  more  delicate  processes ;  but  the 
price  of  these  alkalies  has  led  to  the  employment  almost  universally  of  the 
"  bleaching  powder,"  manufactured  to  an  immense  extent  in  England 
and  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  under  the  name  of  "chloride  of  lime." 

The  bleaching  property  of  chlorine  consists  in  its  powerful  affinity  for 
hydrogen  ;  not  only  does  it  combine  rapidly  with  that  element  in  the  gas- 
eous state,  under  the  influence  of  light,  but  seizes  upon  it  in  many  of  its 
liquid  and  solid  combinations — as  in  volatile  oils,  which  it  inflames,  and 
in  yellow  wax,  cotton  and  flax,  which  it  whitens  by  decomposing  the  mat- 
ter which  gives  them  color,  and  of  which  hydrogen  is  reckoned  the  basis. 
For  the  same  reason,  it  is  used  successfully  in  destroying  malaria,  and 
putrescent  miasmata,  which  all  contain  hydrogenous  matter  as  their  base, 
and  which  is  seized  upon  by  this  energetic  element.  It  is  the  same  affin- 
ity for  hydrogen  which  causes  the  evolution  of  oxygen  gas  from  water 
which  has  absorbed  chlorine ;  the  chlorine  combines  with  the  hydrogen 
of  the  water,  forming  hydrochloric  acid,  and  liberates  the  oxygen,  the  other 
element  of  the  water. 

It  was  stated  that  the  grand  source  of  chlorine  is  the  water  of  the 
ocean.  This  is  an  enormous  solution  of  salt — a  universally  known  and 
indispensable  article  of  consumption  with  the  human  race,  an  article 
indeed  which  seems  to  be  essentially  necessary  to  maintain  the  body  in  a 
healthy  condition.  Now  this  salt  is  a  compound  of  chlorine  and  a  metal; 
it  is  in  fact  a  chloride,  consisting  when  pure  of  60  of  chlorine  and  40  of 
sodium  in  100  parts  ;  and  whether  it  be  obtained  by  evaporation  of  sea 
water,  or  be  dug  out  of  the  salt  mines  of  Wieliczka  or  Northwich,  it  has 
the  same  composition.  It  is  never  indeed  found  unmixed  with  foreign 
matters,  but  it  may  be  separated  from  all  impurities  by  appliances  of 
chemistry,  which  is  foreign  to  this  part  of  our  subject. 

To  separate  the  chlorine  from  the  metallic  base  with  which  it  is  in 
combination  in  the  salt,  it  is  only  necessary  to  devise  a  means  of  subvert- 
ing the  affinity  which  retains  them  in  union.  This  can  readily  be  done 
in  the  following  way  : — 

Introduce  into  a  glass  retort  a  mixture  of  three  parts  of  common  salt,  and  two  parts  of  black 
oxide  of  manganese,  and  pour  upon  the  mixture  two  parts  of  sulphuric  acid  diluted  with  its 


616 


CHR. 


[appendix. 


own  weight  of  water.  (A  tubulated  retort  should  be  used,  and  the  acid  should  be  added  at 
two  or  three  different  times  to  avoid  too  violent  an  effervescence.)  The  heat  of  a  spirit  lamp 
being  applied  to  the  retort,  the  gas  will  be  expelled,  and  may  be  collected  in  bodies  inverted 
in  as  little  water  as  will  answer  the  purpose,  in  order  to  prevent  waste  by  absorption. 

This  is  a  method  of  obtaining  chlorine  from  common  salt ;  it  is  that 
practised  by  the  manufacturer  upon  an  extended  scale ;.  but  chlorine  may 
be  obtained  more  conveniently  in  small  quantities  by  pouring  hydrochlo- 
ric acid  upon  black  oxide  of  manganese  in  a  retort,  and  applying  a  gen- 
tle heat  as  before.  In  this  case  a  portion  of  the  acid  is  decomposed,  and 
the  element  chlorine  passes  off  in  the  form  of  a  green  pungent  gas. — (See 
Bleaching,  chapter  I.,  Part  II.) 

CHROMATE  OF  LEAD. — (See  chapter  IV.,  Part  I.) 

CHROMATE  OF  POTASH.— All  the  salts  of  chromic  acid  are  of 
a  yellow,  orange,  or  red  color:  by  mixing  them  with  a  little  alkali,  they 
afford,  with  the  heat  of  the  blowpipe,  a  beautiful  green-colored  glass. 
This  green  color  of  the  oxide  of  chrome  may  also  be  developed  by  treat- 
ing any  chromate  with  muriatic  acid  and  a  little  alcohol.  If  we  neutral- 
ize chromic  acid  with  potash,  by  evaporation  of  the  solution,  we  shall 
obtain  two  distinct  salts.  The  first  which  crystalizes  will  be  a  bichromate 
of  potash,  consisting  of  2  equivalents  of  acid  and  1  of  base ;  the  second, 
which  is  much  more  soluble,  of  1  equivalent  of  acid  and  1  of  base.  The 
latter,  or  chromale  of  potash,  is  procured  in  prismatic  crystals  of  a  fine 
lemon-yellow  color,  and  possesses  a  cool,  bitter,  disagreeable  taste.  It 
turns  the  yellow  color  of  vegetables  red.  When  exposed  to  heat  it  is  not 
decomposed,  but  assumes  a  tint  of  green  from  the  formation  of  a  minute 
portion  of  protoxide.  Though  very  soluble  in  water,  it  is  insoluble  in 
alcohol,  and  does  not  contain  any  water  of  crystalization. 

The  bichromate  of  potash  (chrome)  is  much  less  soluble  than  the  neutral 
chromate,  and  100  parts  of  water  only  take  up  10  of  the  salt.  It  forms 
beautiful  tabular  crystals  of  a  rich  red  color,  which  are  anhydrous,  and 
consist  of  2  equivalents  of  the  acid  and  1  of  the  alkali.  When  exposed 
to  heat  they  suffer  decomposition  ;  the  neutral  chromate  is  formed,  mixed 
with  oxide  of  chrome,  from  the  deoxygenation  of  the  excess  of  acid. 
The  solution  of  this  salt  reddens  vegetable  blue  colors.  Chromate  of 
potash  is  manufactured  on  a  large  scale  by  heating  to  redness,  with  an 
equal  weight  of  nitre,  a  mineral  known  by  the  name  of  chromate  of  iron, 
and  which  is  a  native  compound  of  the  oxides  of  iron  and  chrome. 
Chromic  acid  is  thus  generated,  which  combines  with  the  alkali  of  the 
nitre.  The  mass  obtained  is  digested  in  water,  and  the  solution  neutral- 
ized by  nitric  acid.  By  evaporation  crystals  of  nitre  are  separated,  and 
the  residual  liquid,  by  spontaneous  evaporation,  affords  small  crystals  of 
the  salt. 

From  the  chromate  of  potash  all  the  other  chromates  are  easily  ob- 
tained by  double  decomposition :  the  soluble  salts  of  baryta,  lead,  protox- 


APPENDIX.] 


CIN. 


617 


ide  of  mercury,  and  silver,  afford  insoluble  chromates  of  the  same  bases. 
The  first  two  are  yellow,  the  second  orange-red,  and  the  third  deep  red. 
Many  of  these  salts  are  valuable  as  brilliant  pigments ;  and  a  sub-chro- 
mate  of  lead,  formed  by  boiling  the  neutral  chromate  with  potash,  is  ex- 
tensively used  as  a  fine  unalterable  red  in  calico-printing. 

CHROMATICS.— That  part  of  optics  which  treats  of  the  colors  of 
light  and  of  natural  bodies.  This  is  a  very  important  branch  of  physical 
science,  and  one  which  of  late  years  has  been  prosecuted  with  great 
assiduity.  Until  Newton  undertook  his  memorable  experiments  on  the 
refraction  of  light,  the  cause  of  the  different  colors  of  bodies  had  never 
received  any  satisfactory  explanation  :  such,  indeed,  was  the  difficulty 
which  the  ancients  attached  to  this  subject,  that  Plato  considered  it  to  be 
an  usurpation  of  the  rights  of  the  Deity  to  attempt  the  investigation  of 
this  mystery  of  nature.  The  discovery  of  the  difference  of  refrangibility 
in  the  colored  rays  of  the  solar  spectrum  afforded  a  clue  to  the  solution 
of  the  problem ;  and  Newton  demonstrated,  by  a  series  of  decisive  ex- 
periments, that  color  depends  not  on  any  modification  of  light  acquired 
by  reflection  or  refraction,  but  is  inherent  in  the  light  itself;  the  solar 
beam  being  composed  of  rays  of  all  the  colors  contained  in  the  spectrum, 
which  are  differently  affected  in  passing  through  refracting  media.  This 
hypothesis  of  the  existence  of  different  species  of  luminous  molecules  is 
founded  on  the  other  hypothesis,  that  light  is  a  substance  emitted  from  the 
sun  or  luminous  body,  and  is  indeed  a  necessary  consequence  of  that  the- 
ory ;  for  if  color  depended  merely  on  a  difference  of  the  masses,  or  of  the 
initial  velocities  of  the  particles,  it  would  follow  that  the  dispersion  of  the 
rays,  in  passing  through  a  prism,  would  always  be  proportional  to  the 
refraction,  which  is  well  known,  is  contrary  to  experience. — Brande.* 

CHROMIUM  is  a  whitish,  brittle,  and  very  infusible  metal ;  sp.  gr. 
5*5.  When  heated  with  nitre  it  is  converted  into  chromic  acid. — (See 
chapter  IV.,  Part  I.) 

CINNABAR. — The  native  red  sulphuret  of  mercury.  It  occurs  some- 
times crystalized  in  rhomboids ;  has  a  specific  gravity  varying  from  6*7  to 
8*2;  a  flat  conchoidal  fracture,  is  fine  grained  ;  opaque  ;  has  an  adaman- 
tine lustre,  and  a  color  passing  from  cochineal  to  ruby-red.  The  fibrous 
and  earthy  cinnabar  has  a  scarlet  hue.  It  is  met  with  disseminated  in 
smaller  or  larger  lumps  in  veins,  which  are  surrounded  by  a  black  clay, 
and  is  associated  with  native  quicksilver,  amalgam,  with  iron-ore,  lead- 
glance,  blende,  copper-ore,  gold,  &c.  Its  principal  localities  are  Alma- 
den  in  Spain,  Idria  in  the  Schiefergebirge,  Kremnitz  and  Schemnitz  in 
Hungary ;  in  Saxony,  Bavaria,  Bohemia,  Nassau,  China,  Japan,  Mexico, 
Columbia,  Peru.  It  consists  of  two  primes  of  sulphur,  =  32*240,  com- 
bined with  one  of  mercury,  —  202-863 ;  or  in  100  parts,  of  12-7  sulphur 


*  See  chapter  IT.,  Part  I. 

78 


618 


COL. 


[appendix. 


-f-  87-3  mercury.  It  is  the  most  prolific  ore  of  this  metal ;  and  is  easily 
smelted  by  exposing  a  mixture  of  it  with  iron  or  lime  to  a  red  heat  in 
retorts.*  Factitious  cinnabar  is  called  in  commerce  Vermilion. — (See 
Vermilion.) 

CLAY. — In  chemistry,  a  term  generally  applied  to  a  variety  of 
plastic  earthy  compounds  of  different  colors,  and  having  much  attraction 
for  water.  They  are  essential  in  the  manufacture  of  pottery,  and  consist 
of  silica,  with  variable  quantities  of  alumina,  and  generally  some  oxide 
of  iron. — (See  Alum.) 

COLOR;  ITS  INFLUENCE  ON  ODORS. — The  following  inter- 
esting series  of  experiments  instituted  by  Dr.  Stark,  to  ascertain  the 
influence  of  color  upon  odors,  is  well  worthy  the  attention  of  men  of 
science.  In  fact  the  subject  has  not,  that  we  are  aware,  hitherto  been 
investigated,  and  we  know  of  no  recorded  facts  in  which  the  influence  of 
color  on  odors  has  been  pointed  out. 

The  attention  of  Dr.  Stark  was  first  directed  to  this  subject  during  his 
attendance  at  the  anatomical  rooms,  in  the  winter  session  of  1831.  Du- 
ring the  early  part  of  that  winter  he  generally  wore  a  light  olive-colored 
dress,  but  happening  one  day  to  attend  the  rooms  in  black  clothes,  he 
was  not  a  little  struck  by  the  almost  intolerable  smell  they  had  ac- 
quired. The  smell  was  so  very  strong  as  to  be  remarked  even  by  the 
family  at  home,  and  it  was  recognised  on  the  same  piece  of  dress  for  sev- 
eral days.  No  odor  to  the  same  extent  had  been  remarked  in  the  lighter 
colored  clothes.  The  fetid  smell  which  they  more  or  less  acquired  in  the 
atmosphere  of  the  rooms  was  comparatively  trifling,  and  slight  exposure 
to  the  air  alone  was.  necessary  to  deprive  them  of  the  odor  which  they 
had  thus  contracted. 

This  circumstance  led  to  a  series  of  experiments,  to  ascertain,  if  possi- 
ble, why  different  clothes  of  nearly  the  same  texture,  but  not  of  the 
same  color,  should  attract  odors  in  proportions  so  very  different.  The  re- 
sult was  that  the  color  of  bodies,  independent  of  the  nature  of  the  sub- 
stance, modifies  in  a  striking  manner  the  capability  of  surfaces  for  im- 
bibing and  giving  out  odors. 

1.  Black  and  white  wool  was  enclosed,  ten  grains  of  each,  in  a  vessel, 
with  a  small  piece  of  camphor,  and  kept  carefully  secluded  from  the 
light.  "When  examined  six  hours  afterwards,  it  was  at  once  evident  to 
the  sense  of  smell  that  the  black  wool  had  attracted  more  of  the  odorous 
particles  than  the  white  wool,  though  neither  had  gained  any  appreciable 
weight. 

2.  Equal  weights  of  black  and  white  wool  were  enclosed  by  Dr 
Stark,  in  a  small  drawer  along  with  a  piece  of  assafoetida ;  in  twenty- 


*  Nitric  acid  has  not  the  property  of  decomposing  cinnabar,  but  nitromuriatlc  acid  dissolves 
it  with  rapidity,  when  assisted  by  heat. 


APPENDIX.] 


COL. 


619 


four  hours  the  black  wool  had  contracted  a  strong  odor  of  the  gum,  while 
in  the  white  wool,  the  smell  was  scarcely  perceptible. 

3.  To  try  the  effect  of  odors  upon  a  vegetable  substance,  equal  quan- 
tities of  black  and  white  cotton  wool  were  taken,  and  enclosed  with  as- 
safoetida.  Two  similar  quantities  were  at  the  same  time  exposed  to  the 
emanations  of  camphor  in  another  drawer.  In  both,  the  black-colored 
cotton  had  attracted  the  greatest  quantity  of  odorous  particles,  as  pal- 
pably evidenced  by  the  smell. 

4.  Equal  weights  of  black,  red,  and  white  wool,  were  enclosed  in  a 
drawer  with  assafoetida ;  and  similar  quantities  of  these  colored  wools  in 
another  drawer  with  camphor.  The  result  was  as  before.  The  black  in 
both  experiments  had  attracted  by  far  the  greatest  quantity  of  odorous 
particles,  as  evidenced  to  smell ;  the  red  next  followed  in  point  of  in- 
tensity of  smell,  and  the  white,  so  far  as  could  be  judged,  had  attracted 
least  of  the  odor. 

5.  The  same  experiments  were  tried  on  cotton  of  similar  colors,  and 
with  the  same  results. 

6.  Six  different  colored  wools,  enclosed,  an  equal  weight  of  each,  viz., 
black,  blue,  green,  red,  yellow,  and  white,  with  assafoetida.  They  were 
ranged  circularly  round  the  odorous  body,  without  touching  it  or  one  an- 
other, and  were  then  covered  over  and  excluded  from  the  light.  At  the 
end  of  twenty -four  hours  they  were  examined.  The  black  was  found  to 
have  much  the  strongest  smell  of  assafoetida ;  the  blue  the  next ;  after 
that  the  red,  and  then  the  green,  the  yellow  had  but  little  smell,  and  the 
white  scarcely  any. 

7.  A  similar  experiment,  using  camphor  instead  of  assafoetida,  afforded 
precisely  the  same  results. 

8.  Various  colored  cottons  were  treated  in  the  same  manner.  In  all 
these  the  smell  was  invariably  found  to  be  of  corresponding  intensity,  ac- 
cording to  the  color,  as  in  the  wools. 

9.  Silks  of  different  colors  gave  the  same  results. 

10.  Dr.  Stark  next  endeavored  to  ascertain  the  comparative  power  of 
vegetable  and  animal  substances,  so  far  as  regards  their  influence  over 
odors.  This  was  a  much  more  delicate  point  to  ascertain  with  sufficient 
accuracy,  and  free  from  fallacy,  as  it  was  difficult  to  obtain  wool  of  the 
same  degree  of  fineness  as  cotton,  the  substances  he  generally  preferred 
for  these  experiments.  Equal  weights  of  black  and  white  wool  were 
first  enclosed,  and  black  and  white  cotton,  with  camphor.  After  twenty- 
four  hours,  the  black  wool  had  acquired  a  stronger  smell  than  the  cotton 
of  similar  color ;  the  white  wool  had  also  taken  up  more  of  the  odorous 
particles  than  the  white  cotton,  though  the  odor  in  both  was  very  feeble. 

11.  When  assafoetida  was  used  in  a  similar  experiment,  the  odor  was 
much  more  distinguishable,  and  it  could  at  once  be  distinguished  by  smell, 
that  the  wool  had  taken  up  much  more  of  the  odor  than  the  cotton.  In- 


620 


COL 


[appendix. 


deed,  from  many  experiments  made  to  ascertain  this  fact,  wool  appears 
to  have  a  peculiar  attraction  for  fetid  odors.  For  instance,  if,  after  hav- 
ing allowed  wool  to  lie  in  contact  with  camphor  for  some  time,  it  be  after- 
wards placed,  even  for  a  very  few  hours,  near  a  minute  portion  of  sul- 
phuret  of  barium  (which,  it  is  well  known,  exhales  copiously  the  fetid 
odor  of  sulphuretted  hydrogen),  it  quickly  loses  the  camphorous  smell, 
and  acquires  and  even  retains  in  considerable  intensity,  the  fetid  smell  of 
the  sulphuret.  It  is  proper  to  mention,  that  in  most  of  these  experiments, 
Dr.  Stark  did  not  trust  to  his  own  olfactory  organs  alone.  All  the  mem- 
bers of  his  family,  and  several  of  his  friends,  having  lent  their  aid  to  dis- 
tinguish between  the  different  intensities  of  the  odor  which  each  substance 
had  attracted  ;  and  though  only  a  few  experiments  are  here  detailed,  sim- 
ilar ones  have  been  many  times  performed  by  the  same  gentleman,  with 
various  other  odorous  substances.  The  whole  of  these  in  their  general 
results  seemed  to  establish  the  fact,  that  the  color  of  substances  exerted 
a  peculiar  influence  over  the  absorption  of  odors. 

In  all  these  experiments,  however,  reliance  had  to  be  placed  upon  one 
sense  alone,  viz.  that  of  smell,  as  none  of  the  substances  employed  had 
gained  any  appreciable  weight.  It  was  therefore,  desirous,  that,  -if  pos- 
sible, at  least  one  experiment  should  be  devised,  which  would  shew,  by 
the  evidence  of  actual  increase  of  weight,  that  one  color  invariably  at- 
tracted more  of  any  odorous  substance  than  another;  and  upon  con- 
sidering the  various  odorous  substances  which  could  be  easily  volatilized 
without  change,  and  whose  odor  was  inseparable  from  the  substance, 
camphor  was  fixed  upon  as  the  one  best  suited  to  the  purpose.  In  an 
experiment  of  this  nature  it  was  necessary  that  the  camphor  should  be 
volatilized,  or  converted  into  vapor,  and  that  the  colored  substances 
should  be  so  placed  as  to  come  in  contact  with  the  camphor  while  in  that 
state.  It  was  therefore  of  the  first  importance  to  prevent  currents  of  air 
within  the  vessel  in  which  the  experiment  was  conducted,  and  with  this 
view,  a  funnel-shaped  vessel  of  tin  plate,  open  at  the  top  and  bottom, 
was  used.  This  rested  on  a  plate  of  sheet  iron,  in  the  centre  of  which 
«he  camphor  to  be  volatilized  was  placed.  The  colored  substances,  after 
being  accurately  weighed,  were  supported  on  a  bent  wire,  and  introduced 
through  the  upper  aperture.  This  was  then  covered  over  with  a  plate  of 
glass.  Heat  was  now  applied  gently  to  volatilize  the  camphor ;  and  when 
the  heat  was  withdrawn  and  the  apparatus  cool,  the  colored  substances 
were  again  accurately  weighed,  and  the  difference  in  weight  noted  down. 

Proceeding  on  this  plan,  the  most  satisfactory  and  conclusive  results 
were  obtained.  The  deposition  of  the  camphor  in  various  proportions 
on  the  colored  substances  submitted  to  experiment,  offered  evidence  of 
the  particular  attraction  of  colors  for  odors,  resting  on  ocular  demonstra- 
tion ;  and  when  to  this  is  added  the  evidence  arising  from  a  positive  in- 
crease of  weight,  as  ascertained  by  the  balance,  the  conclusions  previous- 


APPENDIX.] 


COL. 


621 


ly  drawn  from  the  sense  of  smell  are  confirmed  in  a  singular  and  very  satis- 
factory manner.  In  this  mode  all  the  former  experiments,  with  differently 
colored  substances,  were  repeated;  but  we  shall  here  only  detail  a  few, 
as  sufficient  to  shew  the  general  results. 

1.  Ten  grains  of  white,  and  the  same  quantity  of  black  wool  were 
taken,  suspending  them  in  the  manner  stated  ;  the  camphor  was  vapor- 
ized. When  the  apparatus  cooled,  it  was  found,  on  weighing  the  wool, 
that  the  white  had  gained  l-^j-  grain  in  weight,  and  the  black  l-^  grain. 

2.  In  a  similar  experiment,  but  using  three  colors  of  wool,  white,  red, 
and  black,  it  was  ascertained  that  the  white  wool  had  gained  -^-ths  of  a 
grain  ;  the  red  -^ths ;  and  the  black  lT\ths  grain. 

3.  In  another,  where  the  heat  was  applied  for  about  ten  seconds,  the 
white  had  gained  no  appreciable  weight,  and  but  little  smell ;  the  red  had 
gained  ^  of  a  grain  ;  while  the  black  had  acquired  T2^ ths  of  a  grain. 

4.  In  an  experiment  with  black,  red,  green,  and  white  wool,  the  results 
were — 

Black  gained 
Red 
Green  . 
White  . 

5.  In  an  experiment  with  wools  of  nearly  the  same  fineness,  colored 
black,  blue,  red,  green,  and  white,  ten  grains  of  each,  exposed  to  the  va- 
por of  camphor,  give  the  following  results  : — 

Black  gained   l-fw  grain 

Dark  blue      .       .       .       .       .       -  lf\ 

Scarlet  red   1 

Dark  green   1 

White  

In  repeating  this  experiment  the  dark  green  was  T77,  while  the  red 
was  only  y6^  ;  the  others  in  the  order  as  before. 

The  experiment  was  now  varied,  by  employing  square  pieces  of  card 
of  equal  size,  colored  with  different  preparations  of  lead.  This  was 
done  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  whether  smooth  surfaces  of  equal  den- 
sity, and  colored  nearly  as  possible  with  matter  of  the  same  nature, 
would  absorb  odorous  particles  with  the  same  facility  as  loose  portions  of 
wool.  The  colors  were  mixed  up  with  a  solution  of  gum  arabic,  and  laid 
on  the  cards  as  equally  as  possible  with  a  camel-hair  pencil. 

6.  Pieces  of  card  of  equal  size  being  colored  as  mentioned,  with  va- 
rious preparations  of  lead,  namely,  red,  brown,  yellow,  and  white>  and 
previously  weighed,  were  exposed  to  the  vapor  of  camphor  in  the  vessel 
before  described.  After  exposure  for  some  time,  and  when  cool,  it  ap- 
peared on  weighing  that  the 


To  graln 

2 

*  To 

.2  5 
1  0 
1 

*  To 


622  col.  [appendix. 

Red  had  gained   1  grain 

Brown  

Yellow   T5o 

White   a  trace 

The  whole  of  the  upper  surfaces  of  the  red  and  brown  cards  were 
thickly  covered  with  a  fine  light  downy  deposit  of  camphor.  The  white 
card  had  an  extremely  fine  deposit  on  its  surface,  but  inappreciable  by 
the  balance,  which  turns  with  the  fiftieth  part  of  a  grain. 

7.  Another  experiment  with  cards,  colored  black,  red,  brown,  yellow, 
and  white,  exposed  to  the  vapor  of  camphor,  gave  the  following  re- 
sults : — 

Black  gained       ...       1  grain. 

Red  t& 

Brown  -fa- 
Yellow  ....  f-0 

White  fo- 

8.  In  a  similar  experiment  with  cards  colored  black,  dark  blue,  dark 
brown,  orange  red,  and  white,  the  attractive  powers  were  as  follows : — 

Black  gained  f^-  grain 

Dark  blue  . 
Dark  brown 

Orange  red  .  .       •  to 

White  -jV 

In  all  these  experiments  it  was  invariably  found  that  the  black  at- 
tracted most,  the  blue  next ;  then  followed  the  red  and  green :  and  after 
these  the  yellow  and  white.  The  heat  was  never  continued  so  long  as  to 
^varm  the  apparatus,  else  the  whole  camphor  would  have  been  driven  off. 
Neither  was  such  a  quantity  of  camphor  used  as  would  have  given  a 
:hick  coating  to  the  wool  employed,  as  then  the  attraction  of  the  colored 
surfaces  might  have  been  diminished. 

1.  The  next  set  of  experiments  were  intended  to  ascertain  the  compar- 
ative attraction  of  animal  and  vegetable  substances.  The  first  of  these 
was  upon  equal  weights  of  black  wool  and  black  silk,  (ten  grains,)  ex- 
posed to  the  vapor  of  camphor  in  the  manner  already  stated.  The  black 
wool  gained  1^  grain,  and  the  black  silk  1^  grain.  From  this  experi- 
ment it  would  appear  that  of  these  two  animal  substances,  silk  possesses 
the  greatest  attraction  for  odors. 

2.  In  equal  weights  of  white  wool  and  white  cotton,  the  cotton  had 
gained  ^ths  of  a  grain,  and  the  wool  yVths. 

3.  In  another  experiment  with  white  silk,  white  wool,  and  white  cot- 
ton, ten  grains  of  each,  the  result  was  : — 


APPENDIX.] 


COL. 


623 


Silk  had  gained    .       .       .       3-^-  grains 

Wool  2TV 

Cotton         ....  2^- 

4.  In  a  similar  experiment  with  the  usual  weight  of  the  same  articles, 

Silk  had  gained    .       .       .       1T\  grain 

Wool  T5„ 

Cotton         .       .       .       .  ^j. 

5.  Another  experiment,  in  which  black  silk,  black  wool,  and  black  cot- 
ton, were  exposed,  in  equal  quantities  of  the  usual  weight,  to  the  vapor 
of  camphor,  as  before  described,  gave  this  result : — 

Black  silk  had  gained     .       .       ^  grain 
Black  wool  .... 
Black  cotton         .       .       .  ^ 

6.  An  experiment  with  white  silk,  white  wool,  white  cotton,  and  white 
card,  each  weighing  ten  grains,  and  exposed  as  before,  gave  the  following 
results : — 

White  silk  had  gained    .       .       lT9ff  grain 
White  wool      ....  1^ 
White  cotton        ...  1 
White  card       ....  f40 

The  last  experiments  tend  to  show  that  different  substances  attract 
odors  in  different  proportions,  and  this  independent  of  the  texture  or  fine- 
ness of  the  substance  employed.  Wool,  though  generally  coarser  in  the 
filament  than  cotton,  has  yet  a  greater  attraction  for  odors ;  and  silk  more 
than  wool.  The  general  conclusion  would  appear  to  be  that  animal  sub- 
stances have  a  greater  attraction  for  odors  than  vegetable  matters ;  and 
that  all  these  have  their  power  much  increased  by  their  greater  darkness 
or  intensity  of  color.  These  experiments  seem  also  to  establish,  that  the 
absorption  of  odors  by  colored  substances  is  regulated  by  the  same  law 
which  governs  the  absorption  of  light  and  heat.  The  analogy  goes  still 
further;  for  in  other  experiments  made  with  a  view  to  ascertain  this 
point,  it  was  invariably  found  that  the  power  of  color  in  radiating  or  giv- 
ing out  odors,  was  in  strict  relation  to  the  radiation  of  heat  in  similar  cir- 
cumstances. Dr.  Stark's  first  experiments  on  this  branch  were  with  dif- 
ferently colored  wools,  enclosed  for  a  certain  time  in  a  drawer  along  with 
assafoetida  and  camphor,  and  afterwards  exposed  for  a  specific  period  to 
the  action  of  the  air.  Though  one  can  easily  judge  by  the  sense  of  smell 
alone  the  different  intensities  which  these  articles  have  acquired  imme- 
diately on  being  taken  out  of  the  drawer,  yet,  after  exposure  for  some 
time  to  the  air,  the  difference  of  intensity  is  much  more  difficult  to  be 


624 


COL. 


[appendix. 


perceived.  In  general,  it  appeared  that  the  whole  of  the  substances  lost 
their  sensible  odor  in  nearly  the  same  space  of  time,  though  the  odorous 
particles  given  out  by  the  black  were  of  course  much  greater  in  quantity 
than  the  others. 

To  demonstrate  this,  pieces  of  card,  colored  as  before,  black,  dark  blue, 
brown,  orange,  red,  and  white,  were  taken,  and  after  having  exposed 
them  to  the  vapor  of  camphor,  in  the  usual  manner,  they  were  taken  out 
of  the  vessel,  weighed,  and  left  in  the  apartment  for  twenty-four  hours. 
Upon  carefully  re-weighing  the  cards  at  the  end  of  this  period,  it  was 
found  that  the  black  had  lost  one  grain ;  the  blue  nearly  as  much ;  the 
brown  ^-ths  of  a  grain  ;  the  red  -^ths  ;  and  the  white  -/^ths  of  a  grain. 
In  about  six  hours  after  this  the  black  and  blue  had  completely  lost  their 
camphor  ;  the  brown  and  red  had  the  merest  trace,  inappreciable  to  a  del- 
icate balance,  while  the  white  still  retained  about  ^th  of  a  grain. 

In  another  experiment  with  cards,  colored  dark  blue,  dark  brown, 
orange  red,  yellow,  and  white,  they  had  gained  in  weight,  after  exposure 
to  the  vapor  of  camphor, 

Dark  blue 
Dark  brown 
Orange  red 
Yellow 
White  . 

After  lying  in  the  apartment  for  twenty-four  hours,  the  cards  were 
again  carefully  weighed,  when  the  camphor  remaining  was  found  to  be  on 
the 

Dark  blue 
Dark  brown 
Orange  red 
Yellow 
White  . 

Hence  in  the  same  space  of  time  the  loss  in  each  was, 

Dark  blue 
Dark  brown 
Orange  red 
Yellow  . 
White 

If  it  be  thus  certain  that  odorous  emanations  have  not  only  a  particular 
affinity  for  different  substances,  but  that  the  color  of  those  substances 
materially  affects  their  absorbing  or  radiating  quality,  the  knowledge  of 
these  facts  may  afford  useful  hints  for  the  preservation  of  the  general 


T-o-  Srain 


315-  gram 


1  0 

2 
To 
1 

1  o 

_3 
1  0 


§°  gram 

21 
30 
12 
30 


3  0 

3  0" 


APPENDIX.] 


COP. 


625 


health  during  the  prevalence  of  contagious  or  epidemic  diseases. — (See 
conclusion  of  chapter  II.,  Part  I.) 

COMBINATION. — A  chemical  term  which  denotes  the  intimate  un- 
ion of  dissimilar  particles  of  matter,  into  a  homogeneous-looking  com- 
pound, possessed  of  properties  generally  different  from  those  of  the  sepa- 
rate constituents. 

COMBUSTIBLE  ;  any  substance  which  exposed  in  the  air  to  a 
certain  temperature,  consumes  spontaneously  with  the  emission  of  heat 
and  light.  All  such  combustibles  as  are  cheap  enough  for  common  use 
go  under  the  name  of  fuel.  Every  combustible  requires  a  peculiar  pitch 
of  temperature  to  be  kindled,  called  its  accendible  point.  Thus  phospho- 
rus, sulphur,  hydrogen,  carburetted  hydrogen,  and  carbon,  each  take  fire 
at  successively  higher  heats. 

COMBUSTION  results  in  common  cases  from  the  mutual  chemical 
reaction  of  the  combustible,  and  the  oxygen  of  the  atmosphere,  whereby 
a  new  compound  is  formed  ;  the  heat  and  light  evolved  being  most  prob- 
ably produced  by  the  rapid  motions  of  the  particles  during  the  progress 
of  this  combination. 

COPPERAS  (sulphate  of  iron). — Copperas  or  sulphate  of  iron,  is  a 
crystaline  compound  of  sulphuric  acid  and  protoxide  of  iron ;  hence  called, 
by  chemists,  the  proto-sulphate ;  consisting  of,  26-10  of  base,  29-90  of 
acid,  and  44-00  of  water  in  100  parts;  or  of  1  prime  equivalent  of  pro- 
toxide, 36,  + 1  of  acid,  40,  +  7  of  water,  63,  =  139.  It  may  be  prepared 
by  dissolving  iron  to  saturation  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  evaporating  the 
solution  till  a  pellicle  forms  upon  its  surface,  and  setting  it  aside  to  crys- 
talize.  The  copperas  of  commerce  is  made  in  a  much  cheaper  way,  by 
stratifying  the  pyrites  found  in  the  coal  measures,  upon  a  sloping  puddled 
platform  of  stone,  leaving  the  sulphuret  exposed  to  the  weather,  till,  by 
the  absorption  of  ogygen,  it  effloresces,  lixiviating  with  water  the  super- 
sulphate  of  iron  thus  formed,  saturating  the  excess  of  acid  with  plates  of 
old  iron,  then  evaporating  and  crystalizing.  The  other  pyrites,  which 
occurs  often  crystalized,  must  be  deprived  of  a  part  of  its  sulphur  by  calci- 
nation, before  it  acquires  the  property  of  absorbing  oxygen  from  the  atmos- 
phere, and  thereby  passing  from  a  bisulphuret  into  a  bisulphate.  Alum 
schist  very  commonly  contains  vitriolkies,  and  affords,  after  being  roasted 
and  weather-worn,  a  considerable  quantity  of  copperas,  which  must  be 
carefully  separated  by  crystalization  from  the  alum. 

Copperas  forms  sea-green,  transparent,  rhomboidal  prisms,  which  are 
without  smell,  but  have  an  astringent,  acerb,  inky  taste ;  they  speedily 
become  yellowish-brown  in  the  air,  by  peroxidizement  of  the  iron,  and 
effloresce  in  a  warm  atmosphere  :  they  dissolve  in  1-43  parts  of  water  at 
60°,  in  0-27  at  190°,  and  in  their  own  water  of  crystalization  at  a  higher 
heat.  This  salt  is  extensively  used  in  dyeing  black,  especially  hats,  in 
making  ink  and  Prussian  blue,  for  reducing  indigo  in  the  blue  vat,  in  the 


626 


CRY. 


[appendix. 


China  blue  dye,  for  making  the  German  oil  of  vitriol,  and  in  many  chem- 
ical and  medicinal  preparations. 

CORROSIVE  SUBLIMATE.— The  bichloride  of  mercury,  com- 
posed of  200  mercury  -f-  72  chlorine.  It  is  an  acrid  poison  of  great  vir- 
ulence :  the  stomach  pump  and  emetics  are  the  surest  preventives  of  its 
deleterious  effects  when  accidentally  swallowed  ;  white  of  egg  has  also 
been  found  serviceable  in  allaying  its  poisonous  influence  upon  the  stom- 
ach. Its  specific  gravity  is  52.  It  requires  20  parts  of  cold  water,  but 
only  2  of  boiling  water,  for  its  solution.  It  is  used  in  calico-printing. — 
(See  Chlorine;  also  Calico-Printing.) 

CRYSTALIZATION. — The  forms  which  matter  assumes  when  it 
enters  into  the  crystaline  state  are  very  various.  Even  the  same  particles 
do  not  invariably  take  the  same  mathematical  figure  under  the  influence 
of  the  molecular  force  of  cohesion.  The  laws  which  regulate  their  ag- 
gregation, are  continually  liable  to  disturbance  from  extraneous  causes. 
Among  these,  the  nature  of  the  medium  in  which  crystalization  takes 
place,  and  the  temperature  under  which  the  crystal  is  formed,  are  per- 
haps the  most  easily  recognised.  Thus,  crystals  of  the  same  salt  formed 
in  a  hot  and  cold  solution,  under  atmospheric  pressure,  or  in  a  vacuum, 
are  often  different  in  their  geometrical  characters  ;  and  the  forms  assumed 
by  the  same  body,  when  crystalized  from  fusion  and  from  solution,  are 
very  rarely  identical.  In  cases  where  two  distinct  geometrical  forms  of 
crystals  are  thus  obtained,  the  body  is  said  to  be  dimorphous ;  but  if  we 
examine  very  closely  the  various  form  of  crystals  of  the  same  substance 
which  we  obtain  from  a  solution,  or  of  the  same  mineral  which  we  ob- 
tain naturally  crystalized,  we  have  little  difficulty  in  discovering  that  the 
dissimilarity  is  confined  to  the  mere  external  appearance,  and  that  inter- 
nally the  structure  is  uniform.  Thus,  a  crop  of  crystals  of  alum  ex- 
hibit many  different  forms ;  but  if  we  examine  two  of  the  most  dissim- 
ilar, by  dividing  with  a  knife  in  the  direction  of  their  planes  of  cleavage 
— which  are  readily  found  by  trial — we  invariably  find  them  reducible  to 
some  primary  form — the  geometrical  solid,  termed  the  octahedron.  In 
nature  we  similarly  meet  with  numerous  crystaline  forms  of  carbonate 
of  lime — not  less  than  six  hundred  ;  but  actual  dissection  informs  us  that 
they  are  all  resolvable  into  that  form  called  the  rhombohedron.  It  is 
thus  that,  notwithstanding  the  immense  variety  of  forms  which  crystals 
assume,  they  are  all  reducible  to  a  few  classes,  and  brought  within  the 
cognisance  of  fixed  mathematical  laws.  By  dissection,  we  readily  learn 
that  the  atoms  forming  the  crystals  are  built  around  a  certain  nucleus, 
forming  layers  over  its  external  faces,  and  determining  the  ultimate  char- 
acter of  the  crystal  by  the  degree  of  regularity  maintained  during  their 
deposition.  But  it  may  further  be  observed  that  this  central  nucleus  it- 
self must  be  a  compound  structure,  built,  like  the  fully  developed  crystal, 
around  a  central  atom,  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  suppose,  although  exper- 


APPENDIX.] 


CRY. 


627 


iment  does  not  guide  us  so  far,  that  the  primary  form  must  be  regulated 
by  certain  points  of  attraction  and  repulsion,  which  determine  the  law  of 
molecular  cohesion  in  that  species  of  matter  of  which  the  crystal  is 
composed. 

This  atomic  polarity  is,  indeed,  one  of  the  first  considerations  which 
occur  to  the  mind  in  studying  the  phenomena  of  crystalization.  That  it 
really  does  exist  is  at  once  plain  from  the  simple  dissection  of  a  crystal. 
Did  the  particles  attract  each  other  on  all  sides  equally,  there  could  be  no 
planes  of  cleavage  in  a  crystal — in  other  words,  the  crystal  might  be  di- 
vided in  one  direction  as  easily  and  as  readily  as  in  another.  In  fact, 
there  could  be  no  determinate  form  of  crystaline  arrangement.  The 
atoms  aggregating  themselves  together  under  the  cohesive  force  would 
assume  no  definite  structure,  and  no  other  geometrical  form  than  that 
of  a  sphere  modified  by  the  force  of  gravity. 

It  is  this  atomic  polarity  which  has  given  rise  to  the  plausible  hypothe- 
sis, that  crystalization  is  referable  to  the  same  law  which  determines  the 
position  of  the  mariner's  needle,  when  fairly  poised.  Could  we  form, 
with  the  same  accuracy  as  nature,  a  great  number  of  particles  of  steel — 
all  of  definite  and  regular  forms,  and  all  equally  magnetized ;  and,  far- 
ther, could  we  suspend  them  in  a  fluid  of  exactly  their  own  specific 
gravity,  we  might  reasonably  expect  to  realize  some  example  of  the  crys- 
talizing  process.  We  would  have  the  particles  adhering  together  by  their 
opposite  poles,  and  disposed  in  layers  around  a  central  particle,,  which, 
having  only  two  poles,  would  give  to  the  crystal  the  form  of  a  square 
prism,  which  might  be  divided  into  cubes  by  sections  across  its  length. 
Our  crystal  would  be,  of  course,  but  a  rude  imitation  of  nature's  work, 
since  the  finest  particle  we  could  form  would  be  itself  an  aggregate  of 
many  of  those  atoms  which  go  to  the  composition  of  a  sensible  mole- 
cule. 

That  there  is  a  fundamental  difference  in  the  laws  of  molecular  cohe- 
'  sion,  concerned  in  the  formation  of  a  crystal,  is  proved  by  evidence 
derived  from  a  variety  of  sources.  The  peculiar  and  well-known  action 
which  many  crystaline  bodies  exert  upon  light,  furnishes,  perhaps,  the 
most  direct  and  extraordinary  information  of  this  fact ;  it  is,  indeed,  to 
this  physical  difference  of  constitution  in  crystaline  bodies  that  we  owe 
the  great  increase  which  has  of  late  been  made  to  our  knowledge  of  the 
more  recondite  properties  of  light. 

The  opinion  entertained  with  respect  to  the  electric,  galvanic,  and 
magnetic  forces,  is,  that  they  depend  on  the  same  ultimate  cause,  and 
are,  in  fact,  only  modified  exhibitions,  like  light  and  heat,  of  one  and  the 
same  agency.  We  also  know  from  experiment  that  a  change  of  temper- 
ature— the  contact  of  bodies  with  each  other — rapid  and  slow  cooling — 
and  the  application  of  heat  and  light — all  tend  as  disturbing  causes  to 
change  the  electric  state  of  bodies.    An  analogous  series  of  changes  is 


628 


CRY. 


[appendix. 


exemplified  during  the  phenomena  of  crystalization,  when  the  material 
particles  are  similarly  exposed  to  extraneous  influence.  Thus,  the  yel- 
low binoxide  of  mercury,  when  touched,  begins  instantly  to  crystalize,  a 
creeping  motion  being  perceptible  in  it  during  the  process ;  at  the  same 
time  its  color  changes  to  deep  scarlet.  The  often  repeated  experiment  of 
the  crystalization  of  a  quantity  of  glauber  salt  which  had  been  poured, 
while  hot,  into  a  stoppered  flask,  and  allowed  to  cool  in  vacuo,  is  a  similar 
illustration  of  the  disturbing  influence  of  the  atmosphere.  The  disturb- 
ing influence  of  light  is  equally  remarkable,  and  is  well  illustrated  by  the 
crystalization  of  camphor,  from  its  solution  when  exposed  in  a  glass  ves- 
sel to  the  strong  light  of  the  sun. 

In  referring  to  the  analogy  which  is  thus  observed  to  exist  between  the 
development  of  electricity  and  of  crystalization,  it  is  interesting,  as  afford- 
ing another  link  to  the  series  of  analogies,  to  remark  the  peculiar  connex- 
ion between  the  vibration  of  certain  bodies  and  the  formation  of  crystal- 
ine  structure.  For  example,  we  have  no  more  common  experiment  than 
the  formation  of  regular  geometrical  figures  by  sand  spread  upon  a  plate 
of  glass,  when  the  bow  of  a  violin  is  drawn  across  the  edge  of  the  glass. 
Whether  this  be  merely  a  coincident  case,  or  a  fact  induced  by  the  same 
cause  which  determines  the  symmetrical  arrangement  of  the  particles  of 
matter  in  crystaline  structure,  we  do  not  pretend  to  decide ;  still,  we 
think  that  it  is  not  to  be  overlooked,  as  it  may  yet  enable  us  to  advance 
a  step  towards  a  physical  explanation  of  the  laws  which  govern  the  ag- 
gregation of  those  atomic  elements,  by  which  material  bodies  are 
built  up. 

The  galvanic  experiments  of  Mr.  Crosse  have  likewise  their  interest, 
and  throw  considerable  light  upon  the  relation  which  exists  between  gal- 
vanic action  and  the  formation  of  crystaline  structure.  These  exper- 
iments go  to  show  that  one  species  of  crystal  may  be  formed  in  solutions 
of  the  salt  at  the  positive  pole  of  the  battery,  and  a  different  species  of 
crystal  at  the  negative  pole.  Thus,  in  a  solution  of  bicarbonate  of  lime, 
he  obtained  at  the  negative  pole  the  rhombohedral  crystal,  whereas,  at 
the  positive  pole,  he  obtained  prismatic  crystals  of  arragonite.  Some  of 
these  celebrated  experiments  were  as  follows : — 

"  In  a  cavern,  of  which  the  vault  is  covered  with  fine  crystals  of  ar- 
ragonite and  carbonate  of  lime,  the  water  which  drops  from  the  vault 
holds  in  solution  10  grains  of  the  carbonate,  or  rather  bicarbonate  of 
lime,  with  a  little  sulphate  of  the  same  to  each  pint.  A  glass  of  this 
water  was  submitted  to  the  action  of  a  powerful  battery,  and  in  a  few 
days  there  was  found  at  the  negative  pole  rhombohedral  crystals  of  the 
carbonate  of  lime.  Another  experiment  was  by  letting  the  water  drop 
on  a  piece  of  brick,  subjected  to  a  current  from  100  five-inch  plates,  the 
brick  being  supported  by  a  funnel,  which  conducted  the  water  into  a  ves- 
sel below.    After  a  few  months  the  brick  near  the  negative  pole  of  the 


APPENDIX.] 


CYA. 


629 


battery  was  covered  with  crystals  of  carbonate  of  lime,  and  near  the 
positive  were  formed  crystals  of  arragonite.  The  same  experiment  being 
repeated  with  fluosilicic  acid,  regular  hexahedral  pyramids,  similar  in  all 
respects,  were  obtained." 

These  experiments  throw  a  flood  of  light  on  the  nature  of  the  power 
which  operates  on  the  particles  of  matter  during  the  crystaline  process, — 
the  electric  current  of  galvanic  action  forming  crystals  and  disposing 
them  according  to  their  positive  and  negative  qualities.  From  numerous 
facts,  it  would  appear  that  the  crystaline  arrangement  is  produced  by 
electrical  attraction  and  repulsion.  The  various  changes  of  circum- 
stances produce  among  bodies  an  electrical  change,  so  we  observe  the 
same  circumstances  produce  a  change  in  the  crystaline  form.  Bodies 
mechanically  mixed  with  each  other  in  the  first  instance,  will  subse- 
quently assume  a  crystaline  form,  and  here  it  would  seem  that  induction 
had  taken  place,  the  particles  becoming  polarized.  In  all  the  processes 
of  crystalization  a  nucleus  is  formed,  which  draws  the  surrounding  par- 
ticles successively  to  it.  This  nucleus,  which  is  often  different  from  the 
external  form  of  the  crystal,  being  in  a  certain  electrical  state,  in  confor- 
mity to  the  laws  of  electrical  attraction  and  repulsion,  discriminately  , 
draws  the  other  particles  to  it,  consequently  the  formation  of  the  aggre- 
gate crystal.  And  as  the  electrical  state  of  the  first  formed  nucleus,  or 
the  nucleus  put  in  to  hasten  the  process,  is  determined  by  its  elementary 
constituents,  and  the  nature  of  formation ;  hence  the  uniformity  among 
bodies  in  their  crystalized  form  under  one  circumstance,  and  the  dissim- 
ilarity under  the  other,  and  why  a  nucleus  of  the  same  substance  is  the 
best  excitant. — (See  Water  of  Crystalization.) 

CYANATES  ;  saline  compounds  of  cyanic  acid  with  the  bases  pot- 
ash, soda,  ammonia,  baryta,  &c.  The  first  is  prepared  by  calcining,  at 
a  dull  red  heat,  a  mixture  of  ferrocyanide  of  potassium  (prussiate  of  pot- 
ash) and  black  oxide  of  manganese. 

CYANIDES;  compounds  of  cyanogen  with  the  metals;  as  cyanide 
of  potassium,  sodium,  barium,  calcium,  iron,  mercury.  The  last  is  the 
only  one  of  importance  in  a  manufacturing  point  of  view,  since  from  it 
prussic  acid  is  made. 

CYANIDE,  FERRO. — Double  compound  of  cyanogen  with  iron,  and 
of  cyanogen  with  another  metal,  such  as  potassium,  sodium,  barium,  &c. 
The  ordinary  yellow  prussiate  t)f  potash  has  this  constitution,  and  is  call- 
ed the  ferro-cyanide. 

CYANOGEN. — A  gaseous  compound  of  two  prime  equivalents  of 
charcoal  =  12,  and  one  of  azote  =  14  =  26 ;  hydrogen  being  the  radix,  or 
1.  It  consists  of  two  volumes  of  vapour  of  carbon,  and  one  volume  of 
azote,  condensed  into  one  volume ;  and  has  therefore  a  density  equal  to 
the  sum  of  the  weights  of  these  three  gaseous  volumes  =  1*815.  Cyan- 
ogen is  readily  procured  by  exposing  the  cyanide  of  mercury  to  a  dull 


630 


DEU. 


[appendix. 


red  heat  in  a  retort ;  the  gas  is  evolved  and  may  be  collected  over  mer- 
cury. Its  smell  is  very  sharp  and  penetrating ;  it  perceptibly  reddens 
tincture  of  litmus :  it  is  condensable  by  pressure  at  a  low  temperature 
into  a  liquid ;  and  by  a  still  greater  degree  of  cold,  it  is  solidified.  When 
a  lighted  taper  is  applied  to  a  mixture  of  cyanogen  and  oxygen,  an  ex- 
plosion takes  place ;  carbonic  acid  is  formed,  and  the  azote  is  set  at  li- 
berty.* 

CYANURET  OF  IRON. — This  is  obtained  by  passing  an  excess  of 
chlorine  through  a  solution  of  cyanoferride  of  potassium,  allowing  the 
liquid  to  repose,  or,  which  is  better,  to  heat  it  to  ebullition.  A  light, 
green,  insipid  powder  is  deposited,  mixed  with  oxide  of  iron  and  Prus- 
sian blue.  Treated  with  eight  or  ten  times  its  weight  of  boiling  hydro- 
chloric acid,  which  destroys  the  Prussian  blue,  and  dissolves  the  oxide  of 
iron, — washed  and  dried  in  a  vacuum,  it  constitutes  the  new  cyanuret. 

D. 

DECANTATION. — The  pouring  off  a  clear  liquid  from  its  subsi- 
dence or  residue  ;  it  is  often  resorted  to  in  the  chemical  laboratory  instead 
of  filtration,  the  clear  supernatant  liquor  being  poured  or  syphoned  off 
from  precipitates,  which  may  thus  be  repeatedly  washed  or  edulcorated, 
so  as  to  free  them  from  all  soluble  matters. 

DECOCTION. — The  act  of  boiling  a  liquid  along  with  some  organic 
substance,  or  the  liquid  compound  resulting  from  that  act. 

DECREPITATION  is  the  crackling  noise,  attended  with  the  flying 
asunder  of  their  parts,  made  by  several  salts  and  minerals,  when  heated. 
It  is  caused  by  the  unequal  sudden  expansion  of  their  substance  by  the 
heat.  Sulphate  of  baryta,  chloride  of  sodium,  calcareous  spar,  nitrate 
of  baryta,  and  many  more  bodies  which  contain  no  water,  decrepitate 
most  violently,  separating  at  the  natural  joints  of  their  crystaline  struc- 
ture, f 

DELIQUESCENT  is  said  of  a  solid  which  attracts  so  much  mois- 
ture from  the  air  as  to  become  spontaneously  soft  or  liquid  ;  such  as  pot- 
ash and  muriate  of  lime. 

DEUTOXIDE  literally  means  the  second  oxide,  but  is  usually  em- 
ployed to  denote  a  compound  containing  two  atoms  or  two  prime  equiv- 
alents of  oxygen  to  one  or  more  of  a  metal.  Thus  we  say  deutoxide  of 
copper,  and  deutoxide  of  mercury.  Berzelius  has  abbreviated  this  ex- 
pression by  adopting  the  principles  of  the  French  nomenclature  of  1787  ; 

*  For  a  connected  view  of  the  various  compounds  of  cyanogen  employed  in  the  arts,  see 
chapter  V.,  Part  III. 

t  Some  chemists  have  preposterously  enough  ascribed  the  phenomenon  to  the  expansion 
of  the  combined  water  into  steam.   What  a  specimen  of  inductive  philosophy ! 


APPENDIX.] 


EBU. 


631 


according  to  which  the  higher  stage  of  oxidizement  is  characterised  by 
the  termination  ic,  and  the  lower  by  ous,  and  he  writes  accordingly  cupric 
and  mercuric,  to  designate  the  deutoxides  of  these  two  metals :  cuprous 
and  mercurous  to  designate  their  protoxides. 

E. 


EBULLITION. — The  following  table  exhibits  the  boiling  heats,  by 
Fahrenheit's  scale,  of  the  most  important  liquids : — 


Ether,  specific  gravity  0-7365  at  48° 

100° 

Carburet  of  sulphur 

113 

Alcohol,  sp.  grav.  0-813        -  Ure 

173-5 

Nitric  acid, 

1-500        -  Dalton 

210 

Water 

212 

Saturated  solution  of  Glauber  salt    -          -  Biot 

213| 

do. 

do. 

Acetate  of  lead           -  do. 

215| 

do. 

do. 

Sea  salt           -          --  do. 

•  224| 

do. 

do. 

Muriate  of  lime           -  Ure 

285 

do. 

do. 

do.          l-f-water2,  do. 

230 

do. 

do. 

do.      35-5+  do.  64-5  do. 

235 

do. 

do. 

do.      40-5+  do.  59-5  do. 

240 

Muriatic  Acid,  ! 

sp.  gr 

.  1-094            -          -  Dalton 

232 

do. 

do. 

1-127            -          -  do. 

222 

Nitric  acid, 

do. 

1-420             -          -  do. 

248 

do. 

do. 

1-30             -          -  do. 

236 

Rectified  petroleum 

Ure 

306 

Oil  of  turpentine 

do. 

316 

Sulphuric  acid,  sp.  gr.  1-848            -          -  Dalton 

600 

do. 

do. 

1-810            -          -  do. 

473 

do. 

do. 

1-780            -          -  do. 

435 

do. 

do. 

1-700            -          -  do. 

374 

do. 

do. 

1-650            -          -  do. 

350 

do. 

do. 

1-520            -          -  do. 

290 

do. 

do. 

1-408            -          -  do. 

260 

do. 

do. 

1-300+        -          -  do. 

240 

Phosphoros 

do. 

554 

Sulphur 

do. 

570 

Linseed  oil 

do. 

640 

Mercury 

-  Dulong 

662 

do. 

Crighton 

656 

Saturated  solution  of  acet.  of  soda,  containing  60  per  cent.  Griffiths  256 

do. 

Nitrate  of  soda,  60 

do.  246 

I 


632 


ESS. 


[appendix. 


Saturated  solution  of  Rochelle  salt,  containing  90  per  cent.  Griffiths  240 


do. 

Nitre, 

74 

do. 

238 

do. 

Muriate  of  ammonia, 

50 

do. 

236 

do. 

Tartrate  of  potash, 

68 

do. 

234 

do. 

Muriate  of  soda, 

30 

do. 

224 

do. 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 

57-5 

do. 

222 

do. 

Borax, 

52-5 

do. 

222 

do. 

Phosphate  of  soda, 

? 

do. 

222 

do. 

Carbonate  of  soda, 

1 

do. 

220 

do. 

Alum, 

52 

do. 

220 

do. 

Chlorate  of  potash, 

40 

do. 

218 

do. 

Sulphate  of  copper, 

45 

do. 

216 

EFFERVESCENCE. — When  gaseous  matter  is  suddenly  extricated 
with  a  hissing  sound  during  a  chemical  mixture,  or  by  the  application  of 
a  chemical  solvent  to  a  solid,  the  phenomenon,  from  its  resemblance  to 
that  of  simmering  or  boiling  water,  is  called  effervescence.  The  most 
familiar  example  is  afforded  in  the  solution  of  sodaic  powders ;  in  which 
the  carbonic  acid  gas  of  sesqui-carbonate  of  soda  is  extricated  by  the  ac- 
tion of  citric  or  tartaric  acid. 

EFFLORESCENCE  is  the  spontaneous  conversion  of  a  solid,  usually 
crystaline,  into  a  powder,  in  consequence  either  of  the  abstraction  of  the 
combined  water  by  the  air,  as  happens  to  the  crystals  of  sulphate  and 
carbonate  of  soda ;  or  by  the  absorption  of  oxygen  and  the  formation  of 
a  saline  compound,  as  in  the  case  of  alum  schist,  and  iron  pyrites.  Salt- 
petre appears  as  an  efflorescence  upon  the  ground  and  walls  in  many  sit- 
uations. 

ELECTIVE  AFFINITY  denotes  the  order  of  preference,  so  to  speak, 
in  which  the  several  chemical  substances  choose  to  combine;  or  really, 
the  gradation  of  attractive  force  infused  by  Almighty  Wisdom  among  the 
different  objects  of  nature,  which  determines  perfect  uniformity  and  iden- 
tity in  their  compounds  amidst  indefinite  variety  of  combination. — (See 
Affinity.) 

'ESSENTIAL  OILS,  or  VOLATILE  OILS.— Under  this  term 
are  included  all  those  peculiar  compounds  obtained  by  distilling  vegeta- 
ble substances  with  water,  and  which  pass  over  along  with  the  steam, 
and  are  afterwards  condensed  in  the  liquid  or  solid  form.  They  appear 
to  constitute  the  odorous  principles  of  vegetables.  Their  specific  gravity 
fluctuates  on  either  side  of  that  of  water ;  they  are  very  sparingly  solu- 
ble in  water,  and  these  solutions  constitute  the  medicated  waters ;  rose, 
peppermint,  and  other  waters  being  such  solutions  of  the  respective  essen- 
tial oils.  They  dissolve  in  alcohol  and  form  essences,  many  of  which  are 
used  as  perfumes.  When  these  oils  are  pure,  they  evaporate  from  paper 
when  held  before  the  fire ;  but  if  adulterated  with  fixed  oils,  they  leave 


APPENDIX.] 


EXP. 


633 


a  greasy  stain,  and  seldom  dissolve  perfectly  in  alcohol.  The  more  ex- 
pensive of  these  oils  are  frequently  adulterated  with  the  cheaper  ones, 
and  this  fraud  can  only  be  detected  by  an  experienced  nose. 

EQUIVALENTS,  CHEMICAL.— A  term  introduced  into  chemistry 
by  Dr.  Wollaston  to  express  the  system  of  definite  ratios  in  which  sub- 
stances reciprocally  combine,  referred  to  a  common  standard  of  unity. — 
(See  Atomic  Theory.) 

EVAPORATION. — The  conversion  of  substances  into  vapor  is  one 
of  the  most  important  and  general  effects  of  heat.  During  this  process, 
a  considerable  quantity  of  sensible  heat  passes  into  the  latent  or  insensi- 
ble state.  When  a  vessel  of  water  is  placed  upon  the  fire,  its  tempera- 
ture gradually  rises  till  it  attains  212°  ;  then,  although  it  remains  upon 
the  fire,  and  of  course  receives  heat  as  before,  it  does  not  become  hotter, 
but  is  gradually  converted  into  steam  or  vapor :  so  that  the  effect  of  heat 
is  not  to  elevate  temperature,  but  to  change  state  or  form :  that  is,  in  the 
case  of  water,  to  convert  it  into  steam.  Hence  we  assume  that  steam, 
though  not  hotter  than  water,  contains  a  much  larger  quantity  of  heat, 
and  this  heat  again  makes  its  appearance  when  the  steam  is  condensed 
or  re-converted  into  water.  At  whatever  temperature  vapor  is  produced, 
it  is  similarly  constituted ;  and  that  which  escapes  from  water  at  ordi- 
nary temperatures,  by  the  process  usually  called  spontaneous  evaporation, 
resembles  the  former  in  all  respects :  hence  it  is  that  evaporation  is  to 
surrounding  bodies  a  cooling  process  ;  and  that  in  the  converse  change,  or 
the  return  of  the  vapor  to  the  liquid  state,  heat  is  evolved  and  rendered 
sensible.  The  same  general  phenomena  are  observed  with  all  other  li- 
quids, and  those  which  evaporate  rapidly  at  common  temperatures  often 
give  rise  to  the  production  of  a  great  degree  of  cold ;  such  as  spirit  of 
wine,  or  ether.  If  the  latter  fluid  be  suffered  to  dribble  over  the  bulb  of 
a  thermometer,  it  will  cause  it  to  sink  below  the  freezing  point  of  water ; 
and  by  accelerating  similar  cases  of  evaporation,  we  obtain  most  intense 
degrees  of  artificial  cold. 

EXPERIMENTS  AND  OBSERVATIONS  ON  LIGHT.— The 
following  observations  on  Light  which  has  "  permeated  colored  Media, 
and  on  the  Chemical  Action  of  the  Solar  Spectrum,"  will  interest  the 
reader;  especially  when  taken  in  connection  with  chapter  II.,  Part  I., 
and  the  various  observations,  throughout  this  work,  touching  upon  the 
same  subject.  From  these  observations,  the  dyer  as  well  as  the  calico- 
printer,  may  derive  hints  which  may  prove,  eventually,  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance, and  it  is  with  this  view  that  we  introduce  an  article  of  this  na- 
ture here,  although  it  would  not  have  been  altogether  applicable  in  the 
body  of  the  work,  where  we  have  rejected  everything  (as  far  as  possible) 
not  having  a  direct  bearing,  in  a  practical  point  of  view,  upon  the  sub- 
ject. 

M.  Gay  Lussac,  when  speaking  of  the  beautiful  discovery  of  M.  Da- 

80 


634 


EXP. 


[appendix. 


guerre,  said  "the  palette  of  the  painter  is  not  very  rich  in  color  ;  black 
and  white  compose  the  whole.  The  image,  in  its  natural  and  varied 
colors,  may  remain  long,  perhaps  forever,  a  thing  hidden  from  human 
sagacity."* 

However,  the  production  of  a  colored  picture  of  the  spectrum  by  Sir 
John  Herschel,  and  some  effects  produced  by  Mr.  Talbot,  together  with 
some  delicate  tinting,  led  Mr.  Robert  Hunt,  an  ingenious  artist,  of  Dev- 
onport,  to  think  that  colored  photographs  would  come  within  the  range 
:>f  probability,  and  from  this  idea  he  was  induced  to  pursue  a  train  of 
experiments,  from  which,  although  little  has  resulted  to  heighten  his  first 
hopes,  yet,  he  gathered  much  that  is  curious,  and  certainly  instructive, 
as  some  of  the  following  experiments  will  show  : — 

Photographic  papers. 

1.  By  saturating  paper  with  different  chlorides  and  muriates,  always 
keeping  in  view  the  definite  proportion  required  for  the  quantity  of  nitrate 
of  silver  used ;  it  will  be  found  that  almost  every  variety  of  shade,  from 
a  rich  dark  purple  to  a  full  red,  and  a  few  other  tints,  may  be  produced 
at  pleasure. 

2.  The  effects  of  light,  passing  through  colored  glasses  on  various  pa- 
pers, are  singularly  diversified.  The  following  are  a  few  of  the  most 
striking  results.  (The  glasses  are,  a  deep  cobalt  blue,  a  full  laurel  green, 
an  amber  yellow,  and  a  rich  orange  red.  They  are  so  framed  that  alJ 
the  papers  can  be  exposed  at  the  same  time  to  the  solar  influence.) 


Colors  of  Glass. 


Salt  used. 


BLUE.  GREEN.  YELLOW. 

Effects  produced. 


RED. 


a.  Chlor.  of  sodium. 

b.  Chlor.  of  potassa. 

c.  Muriate  of  lime. 
6?.*Muriate  of  iron, 
e.  Muriate  of  perox- 
ide of  iron. 

/,  Mur.  of  baryta. 

g.  Muriate  of  man- 

ganese. 

h.  Mur.  of  ammonia. 

3.  Mr.  Hunt  found  but  a  modified  action  from  the  interference  of  col- 
ored fluids.  In  a  few  instances,  under  a  solution  of  carmine  in  ammonia, 
he  obtained  the  richest  crimson  dye ;  but,  as  yet,  has  not  been  able,  by 
any  means  which  he  has  used,  to  fix  the  color  on  paper. 

4.  A  paper  prepared,  by  first  washing  it  with  a  solution  of  twelve 


Purple. 

Blue. 

Violet. 

Chocolate. 

Light  purple. 

Sky  blue. 

Lt.  violet. 

Tinted  red. 

Rich  violet. 

Faint  blue. 

Blue. 

Reddish. 

Red. 

Colorless. 

Faint  red. 

Leaden  hue. 

Blue. 

Yellowish. 

Straw  color. 

Yel.  brown. 

Purple  red. 

Lilac. 

Chocolate. 

Pink. 

Rich  brown. 

Reddish. 

Rose  hue. 

Yellow. 

Olive  brown. 

Pale  brown. 

Brown. 

Dull  orange. 

*  The  History  and  Practice  of  Photographic  Drawing,  &c,  by  L.  J.  M.  Daguerra. 


APPENDIX.] 


EXP. 


635 


grains  of  iodide  of  potassium  in  an  ounce  of  water,  and  then  with  a  solu- 
tion of  ten  grains  of  the  crystalized  nitrate  of  silver  in  the  same  quantity 
of  fluid,  is  very  sensitive.  When  exposed  beneath  a  solution  of  the  am- 
monia-sulphate of  copper  to  sunshine,  it  changes  to  a  rich  Light-blue. 
Acetate  of  copper  produces  a  brown.  Muriate  of  the  peroxide  of  iron 
imparts  a  green  tinge,  and  solution  of  carmine  a  brown  red. 

5.  The  paper  f  becomes  red,  when  acted  on  by  rays  passing  through 
nitrous  acid  gas,  and  is  tinged  yellow,  by  the  light  which  has  been  sub- 
jected to  the  interference  of  chlorine  and  its  protoxide. 

6.  To  have  as  full  a  volume  as  possible  of  iodine  and  bromine  vapor, 
carefully  closed  vessels,  containing  a  small  portion  of  these  bodies,  were 
placed  upon  a  plate  of  copper  warmed  by  water. 

The  paper,  h,  was  laid  beneath  them  and  exposed  to  luminous  influ- 
ence. Under  the  bromine  it  was  unchanged,  but  beneath  the  iodine  the 
paper  became  richly  iridescent.  The  colors  changed  to  a  uniform  velvet 
tint  upon  a  few  minutes  exposure  to  direct  sunshine. 

7.  Papers  already  darkened  by  sunlight  during  prolonged  exposure  to 
the  influence  of  the  dissevered  rays  of  the  spectrum,  assume  a  variety  of 
colors.  The  same  changes  may  be  effected  by  carefully  arranging  glasses, 
and  placing  the  photographic  preparations  beneath  them.  We  shall  copy 
exactly  the  memoranda  of  Mr.  Hunt's  journal. 

Dec.  12,  1839. — He  placed  under  blue,  green,  yellow,  and  red  glass, 
the  following  papers : — 

A.  Muriate  of  ammonia,  with  two  washings  of  solution  of  the  nitrate 
of  silver,  darkened  by  exposure  to  a  rich  chocolate. 

B.  Muriate  of  manganese. — Silver,  two  washings,  darkened  to  a  full 
brown. 

C.  Iodide  of  potassium. — Silver,  one  washing,  darkened  to  a  yellow 
brown. 

D.  Iodide  of  potassium  and  silver,  two  washings,  darkened  to  a  red 
brown. 

£.  Chloroidic  acid. — Silver,  two  washings,  darkened  to  a  rich  bronze. 

F.  Chloroidic  acid  with  Liquor  potass. — Silver,  two  washings,  darken- 
ed to  a  blue  brown. 

Dec.  13. — After  twelve  hours  exposure  to  the  dull  light  of  rainy 
weather,  the  paper,  E,  became  blue  under  the  blue  glass.  No  change 
was  apparent  on  the  others. 

Dec.  27.  Colors  of  Glass. 

Blue.  Green.  Yellow.  Red. 

A.  became  Olive.  Deep  green.     Dirty  yellow.  Red. 

B.  do.     Deep  brown.    Bat  color.        Blue  brown.  Red. 

C.  do.  do.  Darkened.       No  change.      Red  brown. 

D.  do.     Black.  Light  brown.  Rich  brown.    Brick  red. 


636 


EXP. 


[appendix. 


Blue.  Green.  Yellow.  Red. 

E.  became  Blue  black.      Darkened.       Darkened.       Dusky  red. 

F.  do.     Black  brown.  Dull  plum.      Bluish.  Reddened. 

Jan.  2,  1840. — All  the  papers  went  on  increasing  the  distinctness  of 
their  colors,  except  E,  and  F,  which  assumed  different  shades  of  blackness. 

(E  and  F  were  removed,  and  a  paper,  G,  prepared  with  muriate  of 
baryta  and  two  washings  of  silver,  darkened  to  a  chocolate,  substituted.) 


Feb.  7. 

A.  became 

B.  do. 

C.  do. 

D.  do. 


Colors  of  Glass. 


Blue. 
Rich  olive. 
Black. 

do. 
Chocolate. 


Green. 
Green. 
Chocolate. 
Red  brown. 
Umber  brown. 


Yellow.  Red. 

Yellow.  Purple. 

Light  brown.  Red. 

do.  Brown. 

Black.  Red  brown. 


G.     do.     Brieht  olive.    Yellow  brown.  Pale  olive. 


Reddish. 


The  two  papers,  A  and  G,  exhibit  more  sensitiveness  to  luminous  in- 
fluence than  any  others  tried. 

8.  The  paper,  A,  when  washed  with  a  weak  solution  of  the  hydriodate 
of  baryta,  gives  under  the  pencil  of  light  a  beautiful  picture,  whether 
used  in  the  camera  or  for  surface  drawings. 

These  pictures  exhibit  the  peculiarities  mentioned  by  Mr.  Talbot  at 
the  British  Association.  Sunshine  changes  "  the  color  of  the  object 
delineated  from  reddish  to  black  with  great  rapidity."  This  gentleman 
adds,  "  after  which  no  further  change  occurs."*  Mr.  Hunt,  in  remark- 
ing on  this,  says,  "  I  have  not  been  fortunate  enough  to  succeed  thus  far 
in  fixing  my  drawings.  The  continued  influence  of  the  light  in  a  few 
months  obliterates  the  impression."  A  singular  change  follows  the 
exposure  of  these  pictures  to  colored  light. 

If  placed  under  vessels  containing  colored  fluids,  (4)  and  exposed  either 
to  sunshine  or  diffused  light,  in  a  few  days  the  picture  becomes  a  full  red 
under  the  blue ;  a  rose  hue  under  the  green  ;  a  light  blue  under  the  yellow, 
and  a  deep  blue  under  the  red.  These  colors,  after  deepening  for  some 
time,  gradually  change  to  different  shades  of  green  under  the  blue  and 
green  fluids,  to  a  pink  under  the  yellow,  and  a  red  under  the  red  fluid  (25.) 
After  this,  the  colors  alter  no  more,  and  the  picture  bears  exposure  to 
light  much  better  than  at  first ;  but,  it  is  doubtful  if  it  is  rendered  per- 
manent, for  the  dull  light  of  January  and  February  has  spread  a  cloudi- 
ness like  a  mist,  over  those  photographs  which  have  been  constantly 
exposed. 


*  Athenaeum,  No.  618. 


APPENDIX.] 


EXP. 


637 


Daguerreotypes. 

9.  Exposing  a  plate,  over  which  some  lace  was  carefully  placed,  under 
four  colored  glasses  (2.)  for  three  minutes  to  diffused  light,  Mr.  Hunt 
obtained,  under  the  blue  glass,  a  beautiful  copy ;  no  trace  of  a  drawing 
beneath  the  green ;  a  tolerable  impression  beneath  the  yellow ;  but  the 
mercury  would  not  attack  the  space  beneath  the  red. 

10.  A  plate  similarly  arranged  beneath  four  bottles  of  colored  fluid  (4.) 
exposed  to  diffused  light  for  fifteen  minutes,  was  found,  on  being  acted 
upon  by  the  mercurial  vapor,  to  present  the  same  appearance  as  above, 
(9.)  excepting  that  a  faint  design  was  evident  over  the  space  the  carmine 
fluid  had  covered. 

11.  Mr.  Hunt  arranged  a  dark  chamber,  to  which  no  other  rays  could 
pass  but  such  as  had  permeated  two  inches  of  colored  fluid. 

Having  filled  the  trough  with  a  saturated  solution  of  the  bichromate  of 
potash,  he  exposed  a  plate  for  five  minutes  to  its  influence  in  full  sunshine. 
There  was  not  the  slightest  action. 

12.  In  one  hour  on  a  similar  plate,  under  the  same  circumstances,  he 
obtained  a  faint  but  still  defined  outline  of  a  dried  fern. 

13.  A  bare  iodidated  plate,  was  exposed  for  two  hours  to  the  same  in- 
fluence. On  removing  it  from  the  chamber,  no  difference  was  apparent ; 
but  it  was  found  that  it  was  no  longer  sensitive  to  light,  and  the  iodide 
adhered  more  closely  to  the  metal  than  it  did.  (28.) 

This  is  a  reverse  action,  for  after  the  exposure  of  a  prepared  Daguer- 
reotype plate  to  light,  the  sensitive  film  is  most  easily  rubbed  off.*  (28.) 

14.  Red  solutions  impart  a  very  decided  rose  hue,  or  more  strictly 
speaking,  the  influence  of  red  light  on  the  iodidated  plate  occasions  that 
peculiar  arrangement  of  the  mercurial  particles,  which  is  necessary  to 
the  production  of  red  color. 

15.  Green  solutions  act  with  more  or  less  effect  in  obstructing  the  pas- 
sage of  the  so-called  chemical  rays,  according  to  their  depth  of  color. 
But  in  no  instance  has  Mr.  Hunt  found  them  to  produce  that  close  com- 
bination which  the  yellow  and  sometimes  the  red  fluids  do,  of  the  iodite 
and  the  under  surface  of  unattacked  silver.  (28.)  By  examining  the  ef- 
fects produced  by  green  media  (2,  7,  16)  a  peculiar  order  of  interference 
will  be  remarked.  (19.) 


*  On  this  principle  Mr.  Hunt  now  polishes  silvered  plates,  by  which  the  troublesome  pro- 
cess with  nitric  acid  and  pumice  is  got  rid  of.  He  washes  the  surface  of  silver  over  with  a 
solution  of  the  iodide  of  potassium  holding  a  little  iodine  free,  and  rubs  it  lightly  until  all  the 
parts  are  equally  attacked.  He  then  exposes  the  plate  to  light  for  a  few  minutes,  and  pol- 
ishes off  with  dry  cotton.  In  five  minutes,  by  this  process,  the  most  perfect  lustre  may  be 
given  to  the  silver,  and  it  has  the  advantage  of  rendering  the  plate  more  susceptible  to  tho 
Influence  of  the  iodine  vapor. 


638 


EXP. 


[appendix. 


Gemination  and  the  Growth  of  Plants. 

16.  Mr.  Hunt  next  planted,  in  a  box,  some  curled  cress  seed,  and  so 
arranged  bottles  of  carmine  fluid,  chromate  of  potash,  acetate  of  copper, 
and  the  sulphate  of  ammonia,  that  all  but  a  small  space  of  the  earth  was 
exposed  to  light  which  had  permeated  three-fourths  of  an  inch  of  these 
media. 

For  some  days,  the  only  apparent  difference  was  that  the  earth  con- 
tinued damp  under  the  green  and  blue  fluids,  whereas  it  rapidly  dried 
under  the  red  and  yellow.  The  plumula  burst  the  cuticle  in  the  blue 
and  green  lights,  before  any  change  was  evident  in  the  other  parts. 

After  ten  days,  under  the  blue  fluid  there  was  a  crop  of  cress,  of  as 
bright  a  green  as  any  which  grew  in  full  light,  and  far  more  abundant. 

The  crop  was  scanty  under  the  green  fluid,  and  of  a  pale  unhealthy 
color.  (15.) 

Under  the  yellow  solution  but  two  or  three  plants  appeared,  yet  they 
were  less  pale  than  those  which  had  grown  in  green  light.  Beneath  the 
red  bottle  the  number  of  plants  which  grew  was  also  small,  although  ra- 
ther more  than  in  the  spot  the  yellow  covered.  They  too  were  of  an  un- 
healthy color. 

17.  The  order  of  the  bottles  was  now  reversed,  by  putting  the  red  in 
the  place  of  the  blue,  and  the  yellow  in  that  of  the  green.  After  a  few 
days  exposure,  the  healthy  cress  appeared  blighted,  while  a  few  more 
unhealthy  plants  began  to  show  themselves  from  the  influence  of  the 
blue  rays,. in  the  spot  originally  subjected  to  the  red. 

It  is  evident  from  this,  that  the  red  and  yellow  rays  not  merely  retard 
germination,  but  positively  destroy  the  vital  principle  in  the  seed.  Pro- 
longed exposure  uncovered,  with  genial  warmth,  free  air,  and  indeed  all 
that  can  induce  growth,  fails  to  revive  the  blighted  vegetation. 

The  experiments  were  many  times  repeated,  varying  the  fluids,  but 
dhe  results  have. been  the  same.  The  above  facts  were  strikingly  exem- 
plified where  the  space  covered  by  the  bichromate  of  potash  was  without 
a  plant. 

These  results  merit  the  attention  of  those,  who  are  engaged  in  the  study 
of  vegetable  economy.  Do  not  they  point  at  a  process  by  which  the  pro- 
ductions of  climes  more  redolent  of  light  than  ours  may  be  brought  in 
this  country  to  their  native  perfection?* 

Dr,  Draper's  "  experiments"  (Philosophical  Magazine,  Feb.  1840,  p. 
81)  "  appear,"  says  Mr.  Hunt,  "  at  variance  with  mine."  "  Under  the 
influence  of  a  nearly  tropical  sun  permeating  half  an  inch  of  solution  of 
the  bichromate  of  potash,  cress  grew  of  a  green  color,  whilst  it  took  five 


*  See  end  of  chapter  II.,  Part  1. 


APPENDIX.] 


EXP. 


639 


days  to  give  a  sensitive  paper  a  faint  yellow  green  color.  From  this, 
Professor  Draper  argues  the  existence  of  two  classes  of  rays,  a  different 
class  being  necessary  to  produce  the  green  coloring  of  vegetable  foliage 
from  that  which  darkens  chloride  of  silver. 

"  With  submission,"  says  Mr.  Hunt,  "  to  one  whose  facilities  for  such 
inquiries  are  so  much  greater  than  my  own,  I  would  suggest  a  repetition 
of  the  experiments  with  some  of  the  recently  discovered  photographic  pre- 
parations. The  papers,  and  7i,  both  under  colored  glass  and  great  thick- 
nesses of  yellow  fluid,  are  deepened  to  a  plum  brown  in  less  than  an  hour." 

Under  three  inches  of  the  bichromate  of  potash,  the  paper,/,  became, 
m  eight  hours  sunshine,  of  a  full  blue-brown. 

18.  The  fact  of  cress  and  pea-plants  growing  green,  under  the  influence 
of  such  powerful  light  as  penetrated  Professor  Draper's  yellow  media, 
will  not  appear  at  all  surprising  when  we  examine  the  rays  which  pass 
through  such  fluids. 

This,  Mr.  Hunt  has  done  by  forming  a  spectrum,  interposing  the  col- 
ored body  between  the  prism  and  the  sun.  The  following  are  the  effects 
of  February  sun  at  Devonport. 

Through  a  deep  blue  solution  of  the  ammonia-sulphate  of  copper,  the 
violet,  indigo,  blue,  and  a  portion  of  the  green  rays  pass. 

Through  solutions  of  the  muriate,  acetate,  and  nitro-muriate  of  copper 
with  iron,  the  green  ray,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  the  yellow ;  a 
trace  of  the  blue  also  is  evident. 

Through  solutions  of  the  bichromate  and  chromate  of  potash,  the  chlo- 
ride of  gold  and  decoction  of  turmeric,  the  red,  the  yellow,  and  the  green 
rays  are  seen,  and  by  taking  their  impression  on  a  Daguerreotype  plate, 
a  line  of  the  blue  is  distinctly  marked. 

Through  nitro-muriate  of  cobalt  in  ammonia,  carmine  in  ammonia,  and 
sulphuric  acid  and  decoction  of  cochineal,  the  red  and  yellow  rays  alone 
appear  to  penetrate. 

19.  It  will  be  observed,  that  the  light  which  has  passed  through  a 
green  medium  (2,  7,  9,  10,  15,  16.)  acts  less  powerfully  in  darkening  pho- 
tographic papers,  and  occasions  vegetable  leaves  to  be  even  paler  than 
that  which  has  been  subjected  to  the  interference  of  a  yellow  medium. 

From  this  Mr.  Hunt  was  led  to  believe  that  the  band  of  rays  formed 
by  the  meeting  of  the  yellow  and  the  green  has  an  influence  similar  to 
the  extreme  red,  in  neutralizing  the  powers  of  the  other  adjacent  rays,  as 
was  first  noticed  by  Sir  John  Herschel,  (22,)  (23,)  (26.) 

The  annexed  figure  (49)  represents  the  solar  spectrum,  as  it  impresses 
itself  on  a  Daguerreotype  plate,  not  in  shadows  merely,  but  in  colors, 
which  have  the  peculiar  appearance  of  the  down  upon  the  nectarine. 

The  most  refrangible  portion  of  the  spectrum  is  represented  in  full 
colors,  shading  from  indigo  to  a  delicate  rose,  which  is  lost  in  a  band  of 
pure  white. 


640 


EXP. 


[appendix 


Fig.  49. 


red. 


21.  Beyond  this  a  protecting  influence  is  powerfully  exerted,  and  not- 
withstanding the  chemical  effect  produced  over  the  plate,  by  the  dis- 
persed light,  a  line  is  formed  free  of  mercurial  vapor,  and  which 
consequently  appears  black. 

22.  The  green  portion  of  the  spectrum  is  represented  in  its  true  color, 
but  it  is  considerably  less  in  size  than  the  space  occupied  by  these  rays. 

23.  The  yellow  rays  are  without  action,  or  rather  they  do  not  prepare 
the  silver  for  the  reception  of  the  mercury,  and  consequently  a  black  belt 
marks  the  space  on  which  they  fell,  and  extends  a  little  beyond  it  into 
the  green.  (19.) 

24.  A  white  line  marks  the  place  of  the  orange  light. 

25.  The  red  is  represented  by  a  well  defined  rose  color,  bounded,  as 
were  the  more  refrangible  rays,  by  a  white  line,  shaded,  at  the  lower 
extremity,  with  a  green. 

This  passing  of  the  red  into  a  green,  and  of  the  blue  into  a  rose  color, 
(20.)  is  strikingly  similar  to  the  effect  produced,  by  the  interference  of 
colored  media,  on  some  photographic  drawings.  (8.) 

26.  The  lowest  dark  space  on  the  picture  is  a  beautiful  illustration  of 
the  influence  of  the  extreme  red  rays  in  protecting  the  silver  from  lumin- 
ous action.   (19.)  (21.) 

27.  What  appears  more  surprising  to  me,  says  Mr.  Hunt,  than  even 
the  detection  of  the  negative  ?  rays  at  each  end  of  the  prismatic  spectrum, 
is  the  continuation  of  the  dark  line  throughout  its  whole  length,  evidently 
showing  the  influence  of  the  same  cause  as  is  so  effective  at  the  least 
refrangible  extremity. 


APPENDIX.] 


641 


This  band  is  not  equally  defined  throughout  its  entire  circumference. 
It  is  the  most  strikingly  evident  from  the  extreme  red  to  the  green;  it 
fades  in  passing  through  the  blue,  and  increases  in  intensity  as  it  leaves 
the  indigo,  until,  beyond  the  invisible  chemical  rays,  it  is  nearly  as  strong 
as  it  is  at  the  calorific  end  of  the  spectrum. 

Does  not  this  protected  surrounding  band  appear,  says  Mr.  Hunt,  to 
indicate  the  existence  of  rays  of  a  peculiar  and  unknown  order,  proceed- 
ing from  the  extreme  edge  of  the  sun? — (See  chapter  II.,  Part  I.) 

28.  By  lightly  rubbing  a  Daguerreotype  picture  of  the  prismatic  rays, 
it  is  obliterated,  except  over  the  space  of  the  yellow  and  red  portion. 
This  effect  corresponds  with  Mr.  Hunt's  experiments  on  the  media  of 
these  colors.  (11,  12,  13.) 

*'  Until  we  have  more  experience  than  we  now  have,"  says  Mr.  Hunt, 
"of  the  effects  of  the  solar  rays  individually  and  collectively,  we  can 
offer  no  satisfactory  explanation  of  the  process  in  action,  on  a  Daguerre- 
otype plate,  by  which  the  subtle  painter,  Light,  impresses  such  delicate 
designs." — (See  chapter  II,  Part  I.) 

Mr.  Hunt  thinks  that  the  existence  of  two  iodides  of  silver,  is  certain. 
In  his  photometric  experiments,  he  has  always  observed  the  formation  of 
an  iodide  which  speedily  darkens,  and  of  another  portion  which  is  unal- 
terable by  light. 

The  sensitive  film  on  the  silver  plate  appears  to  be  the  former  of  these 
iodides.  Throughout  the  range  of  the  chemical  spectrum,  particularly 
so  called,  the  iodide  is,  according  to  Mr.  Hunt,  converted  into  an  oxide 
of  silver ;  that  a  partial  oxidation  takes  place,  numerous  experiments 
have  rendered  certain  ;  whilst  the  influence  of  the  rays  of  least  refrangi- 
bility  is  to  form  the  unchangeable  iodide  of  silver.  Experiments,  how- 
ever, are  wanting  to  prove  this  satisfactorily. 

An  attentive  consideration  of  the  facts  which  have  now  been  enumer- 
ated, will,  no  doubt,  satisfy  all,  that  we  can  no  longer  with  propriety 
attach  the  name  of  chemical  to  the  most  refrangible  rays  only.  Every 
ray  has  its  particular  chemical  office,  either  of  composition  or  of  decom- 
position ;  and  although  Seebeck  has  attributed  the  acquirement  of  a  rose 
hue  by  chloride  of  silver  when  put  into  the  red  ray,  to  the  heating  power 
of  that  portion  of  the  spectrum,  it  is  now  proved  to  be  dependent  upon 
some  other  influence,  for  where  it  has  been  shown  the  most  calorific  rays 
exist,  this  salt  undergoes  no  change. — (See  chapter  II.,  Part  I.) 

F. 

FAHRENHEIT. — (See  Thermometer.) 

FARINA  is  the  flour  of  any  species  of  com,  or  starchy  root,  such  as 

potato,  arrow  root,  &c. — (See  Starch.) 

81 


642 


FER. 


[appendix. 


FERMENTATION. — This  term  has  been  of  late  extended  to  several 
chemical  operations,  besides  those  formerly  included  under  it.  The 
phenomena  which  it  exhibits  under  these  different  phases,  and  the  changes 
which  it  effects  among  the  various  subjects  of  its  operation,  are  no  less 
striking  and  mysterious  in  their  principles  than  important  in  their  appli- 
cations to  the  arts  of  life.  Fermentations  are  now  arranged  into  twelve 
classes — 1,  the  alcoholic  ;  2,  the  glucosic  or  saccharine  ;  3,  the  viscous  or 
mucous ;  4,  the  lactic  ;  5,  the  acetic  ;  6,  the  gallic ;  7,  the  pectic  ;  8,  the 
benzoilic ;  9,  the  senapic ;  10,  the  ammoniacal ;  11,  the  putrid ;  and  12, 
the  fatty. 

Fermentation,  in  the  most  general  sense,  may  be  defined  to  be  a  spon- 
taneous reaction,  a  chemical  metamorphosis,  excited  in  a  mass  of  organic 
matter,  by  the  mere  presence  of  another  substance,  which  neither  ab- 
stracts from  nor  gives  to  the  matter  which  it  decomposes  anything  what- 
ever. This  process  requires  the  following  conditions : — 1,  A  temper- 
ature from  45°  to  90°  F. ;  2,  Water ;  3,  The  contact  of  air ;  4,  The 
presence  of  a  neutral  organic  azotised  matter,  in  very  small  quantity,  and 
of  a  crystalizable  non-azotised  substance  in  considerable  quantity.  The 
former  is  the  ferment,  the  latter  undergoes  fermentation.  In  ordinary 
chemical  actions  we  perceive  one  body  unite  to  another  to  form  a  new 
compound  ;  or  one  body  turn  another  out  of  a  combination,  and  take  its 
place,  in  virtue  of  a  superior  affinity.  The  effects  are  foreseen  and  ex- 
plained by  the  intervention  of  that  molecular  force  which  governs  all 
chemical  operations,  that  attractive  power  which  unites  the  particles  of 
dissimilar  bodies.  Thus,  also,  in  the  ordinary  phenomena  of  decomposi- 
tion, we  perceive  the  agency  of  heat  at  one  time,  at  another  of  light,  or 
of  electricity  ;  forces  of  which,  though  we  are  not  acquainted  with  the 
essence,  yet  we  know  the  exact  effect  under  determinate  circumstances. 
But  fermentation,  on  the  contrary,  can  be  explained  neither  by  the  known 
laws  of  chemical  affinity  nor  by  the  intervention  of  the  powers  of  light, 
electricity,  or  heat.  Fermentation  reduces  complex  organic  substances  to 
simpler  compounds,  thereby  reducing  them  nearer  to  the  constitution  of 
mineral  nature.  It  is  an  operation  analogous,  in  some  respects,  to  that 
effected  by  animals  upon  their  vegetable  food. 

Acid  Fermentation  has  been  fully  discussed  under  acetic  acid.  It  re- 
quires the  presence  of  ready  formed  alcohol  and  air.  The  lactic  fermen- 
tation, on  the  contrary,  may  take  place  with  starchy  or  saccharine  sub- 
stances, without  the  intervention  of  alcohol  or  constant  exposure  to  the 
atmosphere ;  and  when  once  begun,  it  can  go  on  without  air,  Acetifica- 
tion  has  a  striking  analogy  with  nitrification,  as  is  shown  by  the  neces- 
sity of  a  high  temperature,  and  the  utility  of  porous  bodies  for  exposing 
the  liquid  on  a  great  surface  to  the  air. 

Gallic  Fermentation. — Gallic  acid  does  not  exist  ready  formed  in  galls, 
but  is  generated  from  their  tannin  when  they  are  ground,  made  pasty 


APPENDIX.] 


FER. 


643 


with  water,  and  exposed  to  the  air.  This  conversion  may  be  counter- 
acted by  the  red  oxide  of  mercury,  alcohol,  sulphuric,  muriatic,  and 
nitric  acids,  bromine,  essence  of  turpentine,  creosote,  oxalic,  acetic,  and 
prussic  acids.  The  tannin  disappears  in  the  sequel  of  the  above  meta- 
morphosis. 

Ammoniacal  Fermentation. — Under  this  title  may  be  described  the 
conversion  of  urea  into  carbonate  of  ammonia  under  the  influence  of  wa- 
ter, a  ferment,  and  a  favorable  temperature.  Urea  is  composed  in  atoms; 
reckoned 

In  volumes,  Carbon  4  ;  hydrogen  8 ;  azote  4;  oxygen  2 ; 

which  by  fixing        —  4 ;    —  2 ; 

give  4;  12;  4;  4: 

which  is  4  vol.  of  carbonic  acid,  and  8  of  ammonia ;  equivalent  to  ordi- 
nary carbonate  of  ammonia.  The  fermentation  of  urea  plays  an  impor- 
tant part  in  the  reciprocal  offices  of  vegetable  and  animal  existence. 
By  its  conversion  into  carbonate  of  ammonia,  urea  becomes  a  food  fit  for 
plants  ;  and  by  the  intervention  of  the  mucous  ferment  which  urine  con- 
tains, that  conversion  is  effected.  Thus  the  urea  constitutes  a  neutral 
and  innocuous  substance  while  it  remains  in  the  bladder,  but  is  changed 
into  a  volatile,  alkaline,  and  acrid  substance,  when  it  is  acted  upon  by 
the  air.  Yeast  added  to  pure  urea  mixed  with  water,  exercises  no  action 
on  it  in  the  course  of  several  days;  but  when  added  to  urine,  it  soon 
causes  decomposition,  with  the  formation  of  carbonate  of  ammonia,  and 
disengagement  of  carbonic  acid.  The  deposit  on  chamberpots  ill-cleaned 
acts  as  a  very  powerful  ferment  on  urine,  causing  the  complete  decom- 
position of  fresh  urine  in  one  fifth  of  the  time  that  would  otherwise  be 
requisite. 

Nitrous  Fermentation,  is  exhibited  in  the  formation  of  nitric  acid  from 
the  atmosphere,  and  the  consequent  production  of  nitrates  in  certain 
soils,  has  been  with  much  probability  traced  to  the  action  of  ammonia  on 
oxygen,  as  the  intermedium  or  ferment. 

For  animal  and  vegetable  matters  to  run  into  putrefaction,  they  must 
be  in  contact  with  air  and  water,  at  a  certain  temperature ;  viz.,  between 
the  freezing  and  boiling  points  of  water.  The  conract  of  a  putrid  sub- 
stance, acts  as  a  ferment  to  fresh  animal  and  vegetable  matters.  The  re- 
agents which  counteract  fermentation  in  general  stop  also  putrefaction. 
In  this  process,  myriads  of  microscopic,  animalcules  make  their  appear- 
ance, and  contribute  to  the  destruction  of  the  substances. 

FERRIC-CYANIDE  OF  POTASSIUM,  or  Red  Prussiate  of  Pot- 
ash.— This  beautiful  and  useful  salt,  discovered  by  L.  Gmelin,  is  prepared 
by  passing  chlorine  gas  through  a  weak  solution  of  the  prussiate  of  pot- 
ash (ferro-cyanide  of  potassium)  till  it  ceases  to  affect  solution  of  red  sul- 


644 


FIB. 


[appendix. 


phate  of  iron,  taking  care  to  agitate  the  liquid  all  the  while,  and  not  to 
add  an  excess  of  chlorine.  On  looking  through  the  weak  solution  to  the 
flame  of  a  candle,  one  may  see  the  period  of  change  from  the  greenish  to 
the  red  hue,  which  indicates  the  completion  of  the  process.  The  liquor 
being  filtered  and  evaporated  in  a  dish  with  upright  sides,  will  eventually 
afford  crystaline  needles,  possessed  of  an  almost  metallic  lustre,  and  a  yel- 
low color,  inclining  to  red.  These  being  dissolved  and  recrystalized,  will 
become  extremely  beautiful.  This  salt  is  composed  of  33-68  parts  of  po- 
tassium, 16-48  of  iron,  and  47-84  of  cyanogen.  It  is  therefore  a  dry  salt. 
It  dissolves  in  38  parts  of  cold  water,  and  as  it  forms  then  the  most 
delicate  test  of  the  protoxide  of  iron,  is  very  useful  in  Clorometry.* 

The  solution  of  this  salt  affords  the  following  colored  precipitates  with 
the  solutions  of  the  respective  metals  : — 


Titanium 

-    Brownish  yellow. 

Uranium 

-    Reddish  brown. 

Manganese 

-    Brownish  gray. 

Cobalt 

-    Deep  reddish  brown. 

Nickel 

-    Yellowish  brown. 

Copper 

-    Dirty  yellowish  brown. 

Silver 

-    Orange  yellow. 

Mercury 

-    Yellow  with  both  the  pro- 

toxide and  peroxide  salts. 

Tin 

-  White. 

Zinc 

-    Orange  yellow. 

Bismuth 

-    Yellowish  brown. 

Lead 

-    No  precip. 

Iron,  protoxide 

-  Blue. 

 peroxide 

-    No  precip. 

FERROCYANATE,  or,  more  correctly,  FERROCYANIDE.— Sev- 
eral compounds  of  cyanogen  and  metals  possess  the  property  of  uniting 
together  under  double  cyanides ;  of  which  there  are  none  so  remarkable 
in  this  respect,  as  the  protocyanide  of  iron.  This  appears  to  be  capable 
of  combining  with  several  simple  cyanides,  such  as  that  of  potassium,  so- 
dium, barium,  strontium,  calcium,  and  ammonium.  The  only  one  of 
these  double  cyanides  of  any  importance  in  manufactures  is  the  first,  which 
is  described  under  its  commercial  name  Prussiate  of  Potash. — (See  Cya- 
nide; also  chapter  IV.,  Part  I.,  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  and  chapter  III., 
Part  V.) 

FIBRE. — One  of  the  two  bases  of  all  vegetable  structures.  It  may  be 
compared  to  a  hair  of  inconceivable  fineness,  its  diameter  often  not  ex- 
ceeding 1-1200  of  an  inch;  also  the  name  of  the  finer  divisions  of  roots. 


*  See  chapter  V.,  Part  II. 


APPENDIX.] 


FUL. 


645 


FILTRATION,  is  a  process,  purely  mechanical,  for  separating  a 
liquid  from  the  undissolved  particles  floating  in  it,  which  liquid  may  be 
either  the  useful  part,  as  in  vegetable  infusions,  or  of  no  use,  as  the 
washing  of  mineral  precipitates.  The  filtering  substance  may  consist  of 
any  porous  matter  in  a  solid,  foliated,  or  pulverulent  form ;  as  porous 
earthenware,  unsized  paper,  cloth  of  many  kinds,  or  sand.  The  white 
blotting  paper  sold  by  stationers,  answers  extremely  well  for  filters  in 
chemical  experiments,  provided  it  be  previously  washed  with  dilute 
muriatic  acid,  to  remove  some  lime  and  iron  that  are  generally  present  in 
it.  Filter  papers  are  first  cut  square,  and  then  folded  twice  diagonally 
into  the  shape  of  a  cornet,  having  the  angular  parts  rounded  off.  Or  the 
piece  of  paper  being  cut  into  a  circle,  may  be  folded  fan-like,  from  the 
centre,  with  the  folds  placed  exteriorly,  and  turned  out  sharp  by  the 
pressure  of  the  finger  and  thumb,  to  keep  intervals  between  the  paper 
and  the  funnel  into  which  it  is  fitted,  to  favor  the  percolation.  The 
diameter  of  the  funnel  should  be  about  three  fourths  of  its  height,  meas- 
ured from  the  neck  to  the  edge.  If  it  be  more  divergent,  the  slope  will 
be  too  small  for  the  ready  efflux  of  the  fluid.  A  filter  covered  with  the 
sediment  is  most  conveniently  washed  by  spouting  water  upon  it  with  a 
little  syringe.  A  small  camel's-hair  paint  brush  is  much  employed  for 
collecting  and  turning  over  the  contents  in  their  soft  state.  Agitation  or 
vibration  is  of  singular  efficacy  in  quickening  percolation,  as  it  dis- 
places the  particles  of  the  moistened  powders,  and  opens  up  the  pores 
which  had  become  closed.  Instead  of  a  funnel,  a  cylindrical  vessel  may 
be  employed,  having  its  perforated  bottom  covered  with  a  disc  of  filter- 
ing powder  folded  up  at  the  edges,  and  made  tight  there  by  a  wire  ring. 
Linen  or  calico  is  used  for  weak  alkaline  liquors ;  and  flannels,  twilled 
woolen  cloth,  or  felt-stuff,  for  weak  acid  ones.  These  filter  bags  are  often 
made  conical  like  a  fool's  cap,  and  have  their  mouths  supported  by  a 
wooden  or  metallic  hoop.  Cotton  wool  put  loose  into  the  neck  of  a  funnel 
answers  well  for  filtering  oils  on  the  small  scale.  In  the  large  way,  oil 
is  filtered  in  conical  woolen  bags,  or  in  a  cask  with  many  conical  tubes 
in  its  bottom,  filled  with  tow  or  cotton  wool.  Stronger  acid  and  alkaline 
liquors  must  be  filtered  through  a  layer  of  pounded  glass,  quartz,  clean 
sand,  or  bruised  charcoal.  The  alcarrhazas  are  a  porous  biscuit  of  stone- 
ware made  in  Spain,  which  are  convenient  for  filtering  water,  as  also  the 
porous  filtering  stone  of  Teneriffe,  largely  imported  at  one  time,  but  now 
superseded  in  a  great  measure  by  the  artificial  filters  patented  under 
many  forms,  consisting  essentially  of  strata  of  gravel,  sand,  and  charcoal 
powder. 

FULLERS'  EARTH  is  a  soft,  friable,  coarse  or  fine  grained  mass 
of  lithomarge  clay.  Its  color  is  greenish,  or  yellowish  gray ;  it  is  dull, 
but  assumes  a  fatty  lustre  upon  pressure  with  the  fingers,  feels  unctuous, 
does  not  adhere  to  the  tongue,  and  has  a  specific  gravity  varying  from 


646 


GAL. 


[appendix. 


1*82  to  2*19.  It  falls  down  readily  in  water,  into  a  fine  powder,  with 
extrication  of  air  bubbles,  and  forms  a  non-plastic  paste.  It  melts  at  a 
high  heat  into  a  brown  slag.  Its  constituents  are  53*0  silica;  10.0 
alumina;  9*75  red  oxide  of  iron;  1*25  magnesia;  0*5  lime;  24  water, 
with  a  trace  of  potash.  Its  cleansing  action  upon  woolen  stuffs  depends 
upon  its  power  of  absorbing  greasy  matters.  It  should  be  neither  tena- 
cious nor  sandy ;  for,  in  the  first  case,  it  would  not  diffuse  itself  well 
through  water,  and  in  the  second  it  would  abrade  the  cloth  too  much. 
The  finely  divided  silica  is  one  of  its  useful  ingredients.  The  mode  of 
preparing  fullers'  earth  is  as  follows : — 

After  baking,  it  is  thrown  into  cold  water,  where  it  falls  into  powder,  and  the  separation 
of  the  coarse  from  the  fine  is  effectually  accomplished,  by  a  simple  method  used  in  the  dry 
color  manufactories,  called  washing  over.  It  is  effected  in  the  following  manner :— Three  or 
four  tubs  are  connected  on  a  line  by  spouts  from  their  tops  ;  in  the  first  the  earth  is  beat  and 
stirred,  and  the  water,  which  is  continually  running  from  the  first  to  the  last  through  inter- 
mediate ones,  carries  with  it  and  deposits  the  fine  whilst  the  coarse  settles  in  the  first. 

The  advantages  to  be  derived  from  this  operation  are,  that  the  two 
kinds  will  be  much  fitter  for  their  respective  purposes  of  cleansing  coarse 
or  fine  cloth ;  for  without  baking  the  earth  they  would  be  unfit,  as  before 
noticed,  to  incorporate  so  minutely  with  the  water  in  its  native  state ; 
it  would  neither  so  readily  fall  down,  nor  so  easily  be  divided  into  different 
qualities,  without  the  process  of  washing  over.  When  fuel  is  scarce  for 
baking  the  earth,  it  is  broken  into  pieces  of  the  same  size,  as  mentioned 
above,  and  then  exposed  to  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

The  various  uses  of  fullers'  earth  may  be  shortly  explained.  According 
to  the  above  method,  the  coarse  and  fine  of  one  pit  being  separated,  the 
first  is  used  for  cloths  of  an  inferior,  and  the  second  for  those  of  a  supe- 
rior quality.  The  yellow  and  the  blue  earths  are  of  different  qualities 
naturally,  and  are,  like  the  above,  obtained  artificially,  and  used  for  dif- 
ferent purposes.  The  former,  which  is  deemed  the  best,  is  employed  in 
fulling  the  cassimers  and  finer  cloths,  whilst  the  blue  is  principally  used 
for  the  coarser  cloths.  Its  effect  on  these  cloths  is  owing  to  the  affinity 
which  alumine  has  for  greasy  substances :  it  unites  readily  with  them, 
and  forms  combinations  which  easily  attach  themselves  to  different  stuffs, 
and  thereby  serve  the  purpose  of  mordants  in  some  measure.  The  fullers 
generally  apply  it  before  they  use  the  soap. 

G. 

GALL  NUTS,  SUBSTITUTE  FOR.— Alphonse  Rene  Le  Mire 
De  Normandy,  of  London,  recently  obtained  a  patent  for  the  following 
method  "  of  superseding  the  use  of  gall-nuts,  and  of  correcting  the  green 
and  brown  precipitates  obtained  from  the  combination  of  gallic  acid  and 


APPENDIX.] 


GUM. 


647 


sulphate  of  iron,  as  in  the  manufacture  of  the  common  black  inks  now 
in  use."  Instead  of  using  gall-nuts,  the  acid  is  to  be  obtained  from  su- 
mac, elm  wood,  chesnut,  beech,  willow,  poplar,  catechue,  cherry,  plum, 
or  any  other  wood  or  berry,  that  contains  gallic  acid,  or  tannin,  or  both. 
The  wood  to  be  used,  being  first  reduced  to  powder,  is  steeped  in  water, 
and  combined  with  the  hereinafter  named  substances,  in  about  the  follow- 
ing proportions.  It  should  be  observed,  however,  that  the  various  woods 
require  different  quantities  of  water,  according  to  their  solubility  ;  for  in- 
stance, catechue,  being  nearly  entirely  soluble  in  water,  will  require  a 
greater  quantity  than  sumac  ;  the  patentee  has  therefore  only  given  the 
proportions  to  be  observed  when  sumac  is  used  : — 

To  make  340  gallons  of  ink,  take  from  12  to  15  sacks  of  sumac,  of  four  bushels  to  the  sack, 
and  having  obtained  the  decoction,  add  200  weight  of  campeachy ;  80  lbs.  or  perhaps  100 
weight  of  gum  arabic  ;  100  weight  of  sulphate  of  protoxide  of  iron  ;  acetate  and  hydrate  of 
protoxide  of  copper,  4  lbs. ;  sulphate  of  alumine  and  potash,  37  lbs. ;  and  of  sulphate  of  in- 
digo, 6  lbs. :  the  quantity  of  this  latter  may  be  regulated  according  to  the  required  intensity 
of  the  color.   If  catechue  is  employed,  then  100  weight  will  be  found  sufficient.* 

GARANCINE,  an  extract  of  madder  by  means  of  sulphuric  acid. — 
(See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  article  Madder.) 

GRANULATION  is  the  process  by  which  metals  are  reduced  to  mi- 
nute grains.  It  is  effected  by  pouring  them,  in  a  melted  state,  through  an 
iron  culender  pierced  with  small  holes,  into  a  body  of  water ;  or  directly 
upon  a  bundle  of  twigs  immersed  in  water.  In  this  way  copper  is  gran- 
ulated into  bean  shot,  and  silver  alloys  are  granulated  preparatory  to 
parting.    (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Tin.) 

GREEN  VITRIOL  is  sulphate  of  iron  in  green  crystals. — (See  chap- 
ters I.,  and  V.,  Part  III.) 

GUM. — A  vegetable  product  distinguished  by  its  solubility  in  water, 
and  insolubility  in  alcohol :  it  is  tasteless  and  inodorous.  Gum  arabic  and 
gum  Senegal  consist  almost  wholly  of  the  purest  gum.  The  former  flows 
from  the  acacia  arabica,  and  the  acacia  vera,  which  grow  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Nile  and  in  Arabia.  It  occurs  in  commerce  in  the  form  of 
small  pieces,  rounded  upon  one  side  and  hollow  upon  the  other.  It  is 
transparent,  without  smell,  brittle,  easy  to  pulverize,  sometimes  colorless, 
sometimes  with  a  yellowish  or  brownish  tint.  It  may  be  bleached  by 
exposure  to  the  air  and  the  sunbeams,  at  the  temperature  of  boiling  wa- 
ter. Its  specific  gravity  is  1-355.  Moistened  gum  arabic  reddens  lit- 
mus paper,  owing  to  the  presence  of  a  little  supermalate  of  lime,  which 
may  be  removed  by  boiling  alcohol ;  it  shows  also  traces  of  the  chlorides 
of  potassium  and  calcium,  and  the  acetate  of  potash.  Gum  arabic  is 
used  to  give  lustre  to  crapes  and  other  silk  stuffs. 

Gum  Senegal  is  collected  by  the  negroes  during  the  month  of  Novem- 


*  See  Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid,  chapter  II.,  Part  III. 


648 


IRO. 


[appendix. 


ber,  from  the  acacia  Senegal,  a  tree  of  18  or  20  feet  high.  It  comes  to  us 
in  pieces  about  the  size  of  a  partridge  egg,  but  sometimes  larger,  with  a 
hollow  centre.  Its  specific  gravity  is  1-436.  It  is  much  employed  in 
calico-printing. 

Gum  tragacanlh  is  gathered  about  the  end  of  June,  from  the  astraga- 
lus tragacantha  of  Crete  and  the  surrounding  islands.  It  has  the  appear- 
ance of  twisted  ribbons ;  is  white  or  reddish ;  nearly  opaque,  and  a  little 
ductile.  It  is  difficult  to  pulverize,  without  heating  the  mortar.  Its 
specific  gravity  is  1-384.    It  is  also  employed  in  calico-printing. 

H. 

HERMETIC  SEAL. — When  a  vessel  or  tube  is  perfectly  closed  by 
fusing  its  mouth  or  extremity,  it  is  said  to  be  hermetically  sealed. 

HYDROMETER ;  an  instrument  for  ascertaining  the  specific  grav- 
ities of  liquids.  Baume's  hydrometer,  which  is  much  used  in  France, 
and  other  countries  of  the  continent  of  Europe,  when  plunged  in  pure 
water,  at  the  temperature  of  58°  Fahr.,  marks  0  upon  its  scale  ;  in  a 
solution  containing  15  per  cent,  of  common  salt  (chloride  of  sodium)  and 
85  of  water  by  weight,  it  marks  15° ;  so  that  each  degree  is  meant  to  in- 
dicate a  density  corresponding  to  one  per  cent,  of  that  salt. — (See 
Areometer,  and  Thermometer.) 

HYGROMETRIC. — This  term  is  commonly  applied  to  substances 
which  readily  become  moist  and  dry  with  corresponding  changes  in  the 
state  of  the  atmosphere,  or  which  readily  absorb  and  retain  moisture. 
Sea-weed,  several  saline  substances,  porous  clays,  potash  and  its  carbon- 
ate, chloride  of  calcium,  sulphuric  acid,  are  in  this  sense  of  the  term  said 
to  be  hygrometric. 

I. 

INDIGO. — We  intended  to  have  given  an  additional  article  upon  this 
subject  here,  but  on  further  consideration  have  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  subject  has  been  sufficiently  investigated,  at  least  for  any  prac- 
tical purpose. — (See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.,  and  chapter  V.,  Part  III.) 

IRON  MORDANTS. — "  The  principal  simple  preparations  of  iron 
which  are  employed  as  mordants  are  the  following :  copperas,  which  is 
the  sulphate  of  the  protoxide ;  iron  liquor,  which  is  an  impure  acetate  of 
the  protoxide ;  the  pernitrate,  the  sub-persulphate,  and  the  perchloride. 
The  most  available  of  these  forms  of  iron  is  copperas ;  but  this  salt  is 
not  well  adapted  as  a  mordant  for  cotton  goods,  as  the  powerful  affinity 


APPENDIX.]  IRO.  649 

of  sulphuric  acid  for  protoxide  of  iron  is  an  impediment  to  the  formation 
of  an  insoluble  subsalt. 

"  Acetate  of  Iron  ;  Iron  Liquor. — The  iron  mordant  commonly  used  in 
calico-printing  is  the  acetate,  which  may  be  prepared  by  mixing  a  solu- 
tion of  acetate  of  lime,  or  acetate  of  lead,  with  a  solution  of  copperas.  A 
double  decomposition  occurs  on  the  mixture  of  these  solutions,  with  the 
formation  of  sulphate  of  lime  or  sulphate  of  lead,  which  falls  as  a  heavy 
precipitate,  and  acetate  of  protoxide  of  iron,  which  remains  in  solution. 
For  the  complete  decomposition  of  copperas  by  acetate  of  lead,  10  parts 
of  the  former  require  about  13£  parts  of  the  latter;  but  in  the  prepara 
tion  of  acetate  of  iron  in  this  way  on  the  large  scale,  the  copperas  is  al 
ways  employed  in  excess,  being  seldom  in  so  small  a  proportion  to  the 
acetate  of  lead  as  an  equal  weight.  By  exposure  to  the  air  the  acetate 
of  the  protoxide  becomes  partially  peroxidized,  being  converted  into  a 
subacetate  of  the  peroxide. 

41  But  nearly  all  the  acetate  of  iron  used  in  print-works  is  now  pre 
pared  by  digesting,  for  several  weeks,  old  iron  hoops,  nails,  Sfc,  in  the 
crude  acetic  acid  obtained  by  the  distillation  of  wood.  A  dark  brown  so- 
lution, known  as  the  pyrolignite  of  iron  or  iron  liquor,  is  thus  obtained, 
composed  of  the  acetate  of  the  protoxide  of  iron,  and  a  quantity  of 
tarry,  oily,  and  spirituous  matters,  produced  in  the  destructive  distilla- 
tion of  wood.  As  a  mordant,  this  mixture  is  in  general  preferred  to  the 
purer  article  prepared  by  means  of  acetate  of  lead  or  acetate  of  lime, 
probably  because  the  peroxidation  of  the  protoxide  of  iron  by  exposure  to 
the  air  during  the  '  ageing''  of  the  goods  is  retarded  by  the  spirituous  and 
unctuous  matters  present,  which  have  a  stronger  affinity  for  the  oxygen  of 
the  air.  A  small  quantity  of  the  acetate  of  the  peroxide  of  iron  is 
sometimes  contained  in  iron  liquor,  but  by  no  means  as  an  essential  con- 
stituent. 

"  The  principal  pure  persalt  of  iron  used  in  dyeing  and  calico-printing 
is  the  nitrate,  which  is  prepared  by  dissolving  clean  pieces  of  iron  in  ni- 
tric acid  of  specific  gravity  1-305.  Soon  after  the  evolution  of  brown 
fumes  ceases,  the  acid  solution  should  be  decanted,  so  as  to  avoid  the  for- 
mation of  the  insoluble  sub-pernitrate  of  iron.  This  solution  of  iron  is 
used  as  a  mordant  with  vegetable  coloring  matters,  and  also  for  produ- 
cing a  buff  color  with  an  alkali,  and  Prussian  blue  with  yellow  prussiate 
of  potash. 

"A  preparation  of  iron  extensively  employed  at  some  print-works  in 
the  place  of  the  common  acid  pernitrate,  is  a  mixture  of  the  neutral  per- 
nitrate  with  free  acetic  acid,  obtained  by  adding  about  a  pound  of  pow- 
dered acetate  of  lead  to  two  pints  of  a  solution  of  the  pernitrate,  of  the 
density  1-55.  The  acetate  of  lead  is  decomposed  by  the  free  nitric 
acid  present  in  the  solution,  with  formation  of  nitrate  of  lead,  which  is 
precipitated,  and  free  acetic  acid. 


650 


LIC. 


[appendix. 


"  A  solution  of  a  sub-pernitrate  of  iron,  made  by  adding  a  small  quan- 
tity of  an  alkaline  carbonate  to  the  pernitrate,  is  also  sometimes  advan- 
tageously substituted  for  the  pernitrate  prepared  as  above.  The  perox- 
ide of  iron  at  first  precipitated  may  be  redissolved  on  agitation,  if  only  a 
small  proportion  of  alkali  has  been  applied. 

"  Two  other  forms  of  peroxide  of  iron  have  been  occasionally  employ- 
ed as  mordants ;  one  analogous  in  its  chemical  constitution  to  basic  alum, 
and  the  other  to  red  liquor.  The  first  is  prepared  by  partially  decom- 
posing, by  means  of  an  alkaline  carbonate,  the  persulphate  of  iron,  made 
by  boiling  copperas  in  dilute  nitric  acid.  The  oxide  at  first  precipitated 
by  the  alkali  is  slowly  redissolved  by  the  undecomposed  persulphate, 
giving  rise  to  the  subsulphate  of  the  peroxide.  The  preparation  of  per- 
oxide of  iron,  analogous  to  red  liquor,  may  be  made  by  «adding  one  part, 
by  weight,  of  acetate  of  lead,  to  four  parts  of  a  solution  of  persulphate 
of  iron  of  the  density  1*65.  Sulphate  of  lead  is  precipitated,  and  the 
solution  comes  to  contain  subsulphate  of  the  peroxide  of  iron,  and  per- 
acetate  of  iron  or  free  acetic  acid."* — (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article 
Iron.) 

L. 

LAZULITE  (lapis  lazuli)  is  a  blue  vitreous  mineral,  crystalizing  in 
rhomboidal  dodecahedrons;  spec,  grav.,  2*76  to  2.94;  scratches  glass; 
affords  a  little  water  by  calcination  ;  fusible  into  a  white  glass  ;  dissolves 
in  acids  with  loss  of  color ;  the  solution  leaves  an  alkaline  residuum,  after 
being  treated  with  carbonate  of  ammonia,  filtered,  evaporated,  and  calcined. 
It  consists  of  silica,  35*8;  alumina,  34*8;  soda,  23*2;  sulphur,  3*1 ;  car- 
bonate of  Jime,  3*1.  This  beautiful  stone  affords  the  native  ultramarine 
pigment,  which  was  very  costly  till  a  mode  of  making  it  artificially  was 
lately  discovered. — (See  Ultramarine.) 

LEMONS.— (See  Salts.) 

LICHENS. — Plants  of  a  very  low  organization,  which  grow  on  the 
bark  of  trees  or  rocks,  when  they  form  a  kind  of  incrustation ;  or  upon  the 
ground,  when  they  consist  of  irregular  lobes  parallel  with  the  earth's 
surface.  Occasionally,  in  all  situations,  they  are  found  in  a  branched 
state ;  but  their  subdivisions  are  generally  irregular  and  without  order. 
Their  fructification  consists  of  hard  nuclei,  called  shields,  which  break 
through  the  upper  surface  of  the  ihallus  or  main  substance  of  the  lichen, 
are  of  a  peculiar  color  and  texture,  and  contain  the  reproductive  parti- 
cles. Lichens  abound  in  the  cold  and  temperate  parts  of  the  world. 
Their  principal  use  is  that  of  furnishing  the  dyer  with  brilliant  colors; 
archil,  cudbear,  &c. — (See  chapter  III.,  Part  I.) 


*  Parnell. 


APPENDIX.] 


MAN. 


651 


LIGNEOUS. — In  Entomology,  a  part  is  so  called  when  it  is  compos- 
ed of  a  hard  inelastic  substance  like  wood. 

LIGNEOUS  MATTER  is  vegetable  fibre.— (See  chapter, V.,  Part 
I.,  article  Acetic  Acid;  also  Pyroligneous  Acid.) 

LITRE. — The  French  standard  measure  of  capacity  in  the  decimal 
system.  The  litre  is  a  cubic  decimetre ;  that  is,  a  cube,  each  of  the 
sides  of  which  are  3*937  English  inches  :  it  contains  61*028  English  cubic 
inches,  and  is  therefore  rather  less  than  our  quart.  Four  and  a  half 
litres  are  a  close  approach  to  the  English  imperial  gallon. 

LIXIVIATION  signifies  the  abstraction  by  water  of  the  soluble 
alkaline  or  saline  matters  present  in  any  earthy  admixture  ;  as  from  that 
of  quicklime  and  potashes  to  make  potash  ley,  from  that  of  effloresced 
alum  schist  to  make  aluminous  liquor,  &c. 

M. 

MACERATION,  is  a  preparatory  step  to  which  certain  vegetable 
and  animal  substances  are  submitted,  with  the  view  of  distending  their 
fibres  or  pores,  and  causing  them  to  be  penetrated  by  such  menstrua  as 
are  best  adapted  to  extract  their  soluble  parts.  Water  alone,  or  mixed 
with  acids,  alkalies,  or  salts ;  alcohol  and  ether,  are  the  liquors  usually 
employed  for  that  purpose. 

MANGANESE,  is  a  grayish  white  metal  of  a  fine-grained  fracture, 
very  hard,  very  brittle,  with  considerable  lustre,  of  spec.  grav.  8*013, 
and  requiring  for  fusion  the  extreme  heat  of  160°  Wedgewood.  It  should 
be  kept  in  closely  stoppered  bottles,  under  naphtha,  like  potassium,  because 
with  contact  of  air  it  speedily  gets  oxidized,  and  falls  into  powder.  It 
decomposes  water  slowly  at  common  temperatures,  and  rapidly  at  a  red 
heat.  Pure  oxide  of  manganese  can  be  reduced  to  the  metallic  state  only 
in  small  quantities,  by  mixing  it  with  lampblack  and  oil  into  a  dough, 
and  exposing  the  mixture  to  the  intense  heat  of  a  smith's  forge,  in  a  luted 
crucible ;  which  must  be  shaken  occasionally  to  favor  the  agglomeration 
of  the  particles  into  a  button.  Thus  procured,  it  contains,  however,  a 
little  carbon.  Manganese  is  never  found  native  in  the  metallic  state,  the 
substance  commonly  known  in  the  arts  by  that  name  being  an  impure 
oxide. 

MANIPULATION,  in  Chemistry,  embraces  the  manual  and  mechan- 
ical operations  of  the  laboratory  ;  and  in  the  delicate  details  of  analysis, 
as  well  as  in  the  exhibition  of  class  experiments,  great  skill  and  practice 
in  manipulation  are  required  to  insure  success.  The  processes  of  weigh- 
ing, measuring,  filtering,  distilling,  precipitating,  dissolving,  using  the 
blowpipe,  &c,  all  come  within  the  meaning  of  manipulation.  Dyeing 
and  calico-printing,  come  equally  within  the  meaning  of  this  term. 


652 


MEA. 


[appendix. 


MEASURE. — In  a  general  sense,  the  term  measure  is  applied  to  that 
by  which  anything  is  compared  in  respect  of  quantity.  Thus,  we  have 
measures  of  extension,  of  weight,  time,  force,  resistance,  temperature, 
&c. ;  in  short  of  everything  of  which  greater  and  less  can  be  predicated ; 
and  it  frequently  happens  that  the  unit  or  measure  is  not  taken  in  the 
thing  or  property  which  is  the  immediate  subject  of  consideration,  but  in 
something  else  which  depends  on  it,  or  is  proportional  to  it.  Angular 
space,  for  example,  is  measured  by  an  arc  of  a  circle  ;  time,  by  the  ro- 
tation of  the  earth  about  its  axis,  or  its  revolution  about  the  sun  ;  force, 
by  the  quantity  of  motion  it  impresses  on  a  body ;  degrees  of  heat,  by 
the  expansion  of  metals  or  other  substances ;  muscular  strength,  by  the 
resistance  of  a  spring,  &c, 

English  system  of  Lineal  Measures.— The  unit  of  measure,  as  already 
stated,  is  the  yard.  The  yard  is  divided  into  three  feet,  and  the  foot  sub- 
divided into  12  inches.  The  multiples  of  the  yard  are  the  pole  or  perch, 
the  furlong  and  the  mile  ;  5|  yards  being  a  pole,  40  poles  a  furlong,  and 
8  furlongs  a  mile.  But  the  pole  and  furlong  are  now  scarcely  ever  used, 
itinerary  distances  being  reckoned  in  miles  and  yards.  The  relations  of 
these  different  denominations  are  exhibited  in  the  following  table  : — 


In. 

Feet. 

Yards. 

Poles. 

Furlongs. 

Miles. 

1 

0.083 

0-028 

0-00505 

0-00012626 

0-0000157828 

12 

1 

0-333 

0-06060 

000151515 

0-00018939 

36 

3 

1 

0-1818 

0-004545 

0-00056818 

198 

16-5 

5-5 

1 

0-025 

0  003125 

7920 

660 

220 

40 

1 

0125 

63360 

5280 

1760 

320 

8 

1 

Measures  of  Superficies. — In  square  measure  the  yard  is  subdivided  as 
in  general  measure  into  feet  and  inches  ;  144  square  inches  being  equal 
to  a  square  foot,  and  9  square  feet  to  a  square  yard.  For  land  measure 
the  multiples  of  the  yard  are  the  pole,  the  rood,  and  the  acre;  30}  (the 
square  of  5h)  square  yards  being  a  pole,  40  poles  a  rood,  and  4  roods  an 
acre.  Very  large  surfaces,  as  of  whole  countries,  are  expressed  in  square 
miles.    The  following  are  the  relations  of  square  measure. 


Sq.  feet. 

Sq.  Yards. 

Poles. 

Roods. 

Acres. 

1 

9 

272-25 
10890 
43560 

0.1111 
1. 

30-25 
1210 
4840 

0-00367309 
0  0330579 
1 

40 

160 

0-000091827 

0  000826448 

0025 

I 

4 

0  000022957 
0000206612 

0  00625 
0-25 

1  i 

Measures  of  volume. — Solids  are  measured  by  cubic  yards,  feet,  and 
inches ;  1728  cubic  inches  making  a  cubic  foot,  and  27  cubic  feet  a  cubic 
yard.  For  all  sorts  of  liquids,  corn,  and  other  dry  goods,  the  standard 
measure  is  declared  by  the  act  of  1824  to  be  the  imperial  gallon,  the  ca- 
pacity of  which  is  determined  immediately  by  weight,  and  remotely  by 


APPENDIX.] 


MEA. 


653 


the  standard  of  length,  in  the  following  manner :  According  to  the  act, 
the  imperial  standard  gallon  contains  10  pounds  avoirdupois  weight  of 
distilled  water,  weighed  in  air  at  the  temperature  of  62°  Fahrenheit's 
thermometer,  the  barometer  being  at  30  inches.  The  pound  avoirdu- 
pois contains  7000  troy  grains ;  and  it  is  declared  that  a  cubic  inch  of 
distilled  water  (temperature  62°,  barometer  30  inches)  weighs  252-458 
grains.  Hence  the  contents  of  the  imperial  standard  gallon  are  277-274 
cubic  inches.  The  parts  of  the  gallon  are  quarts  and  pints ;  2  pints 
being  a  quart,  and  4  quarts  a  gallon.  Its  multiples  are  the  peck,  the 
bushel,  and  the  quarter  ;  the  peck  being  two  gallons,  the  bushel  4  pecks, 
and  the  quarter  8  bushels.    The  following  are  the  relations  : — 


Pints. 

Quarts. 

Gallons. 

Pecks. 

Bushels. 

Quarters. 

0-5 

0-125 

0-0625 

0.015625 

0001953125 

2 

1 

0-25 

0125 

0-03125 

0-00390625 

8 

4 

1 

0-5 

0-125 

0015625 

16 

8 

2 

1 

0-25 

0  03125 

64 

32 

8 

4 

1 

0125 

512 

256 

64 

32 

8 

1 

French  System  of  Measures. — The  French  system  of  measures,  intro- 
duced during  the  Revolution,  has  for  its  standard  the  length  of  a  quad- 
rant of  the  earth's  meridian.  The  unit  of  measures  of  length  is  the  metre, 
which  is  a  ten  millionth  part  of  the  quadrant.  This  length,  deduced  from 
the  great  trigonometrical  measurement  of  the  meridian  from  Dunkirk  to 
Barcelona,  is  marked  by  two  very  fine  parallel  lines  drawn  on  a  bar  of 
platinum,  and  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences. 
From  a  comparison  of  the  standards  of  this  country  with  a  copy  of  the 
metre  in  the  possession  of  the  Royal  Society,  Captain  Kater  found  the 
length  of  the  metre  to  be  39-37079  inches  of  the  English  standard.  (Phil. 
Trans.  1818.)  Mr.  Baily  found  the  length  of  the  metre  to  be  39-3696786 
inches  of  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society's  scale  (Mem.  R.  A.  S.,  vol. 
ix.,  p.  133),  from  which,  by  reducing  to  the  imperial  standard  yard  by 
the  data  given  in  the  same  memoir,  the  true  length  of  the  metre  is 
39-370091  inches  of  the  imperial  yard.  The  comparison  is,  however,  at- 
tended with  some  degree  of  uncertainty,  from  the  circumstance  that  a 
reduction  must  be  made  for  the  expansion  of  the  metals ;  the  standard 
temperature  of  the  English  measures  being  62°  Fahrenheit,  and  that  of 
the  French  measures  32°,  or  the  temperature  of  melting  ice. 

In  the  French  system  the  unit  of  superficial  measure  is  the  are.  a  sur- 
face of  10  metres  each  way,  or  100  square  metres.  The  unit  of  measures 
of  capacity  is  the  litre,  a  vessel  containing  the  cube  of  a  tenth  part  of  the 
metre,  and  equivalent  to  0-220097  parts  of  the  British  imperial  gallon. 
The  standard  temperature  is  that  of  melting  ice.  All  the  divisions  and 
multiples  of  the  units  are  decimal ;  and  the  principle  of  nomenclature 


654  MOT.  [appendix. 

adopted  was  to  prefix  the  Greek  numerals  to  the  decimal  multiples,  and 
the  Roman  numerals  to  the  decimal  subdivisions. 
The  measures  of  length  are  as  follows  : — 

Myriametre  =  10000  metres 

Kilometre  =  1000 

Hectometre  =  100 

Metre  =  1 

Decimetre  =  01 

Centimetre  =  001 

Millimetre  =  0-001 

The  measures  of  surface  are, 

Hectare  =  10000  sq.  metres. 

Are  =  100 

Centiare  =  1 

The  measures  of  capacity  are, 

Kilolitre  =  1000  litres. 

Hectolitre  =  100 

Decalitre  =  10 

Litre  =  1 

Decilitre  =  0-1 

Centilitre  =  0-01 


The  unit  of  solid  measure  is  the  stere  or  cube  of  the  metre,  equal  to 
35-31G58  English  cubic  feet. 

No  system  of  metrology  hitherto  invented  can  be  compared  with  this 
of  the  French  in  a  scientific  point  of  view  ;  nevertheless  the  decimal  sub- 
divisions have  been  found  unsuited  to  the  purposes  of  retail  traffic,  to 
which,  in  fact,  only  a  binary  system,  or  the  division  of  the  unit  into  halves 
and  quarters,  seems  applicable.  Accordingly,  it  has  been  found  necessary 
to  permit  a  modified  system  for  such  purposes ;  so  that  there  are,  in  fact, 
^it  present  in  France  three  different  systems  of  measures ;  the  ancient, 
which  was  never  wholly  abandoned  ;  the  decimal  system ;  and  a  binary 
system,  or  systeme  usuel,  having  the  decimal  standards  for  its  basis,  with 
binary  divisions,  to  which  the  names  of  the  ancient  weights  and  measures 
are  given,  the  word  usuel  being  annexed  to  prevent  confusion. 

Of  the  different  measures  of  length  used  in  European  countries,  the  foot 
is  the  most  universally  prevalent.  We  subjoin  the  relation  between  the 
foot  of  different  countries  and  the  English  foot,  and  which  is  as  follows : — 


English  foot; 

Russian  foot     -      .-      .-      .-  -=1 
Paris  foot  -      -      -      -      -  =1-065765 

Prussian  and  Danish  foot  =  1029722 

Bavarian  foot  =  0  957561 

Hanoverian  foot  =  0  958333 

Saxon  foot  =  0-9°9118 

Austrian  foot  =  1  037128* 


*  See  Weight. 


APPENDIX.] 


MUR. 


655 


MOTHER  WATER. — A  term  applied  by  chemists  to  saline  solu- 
tions from  which  crystals  have  been  deposited,  and  which,  when  poured 
off  and  re-evaporated,  furnish  a  second  crop. — (See  Alum.) 

MURIATE  OF  AMMONIA.— Muriate  of  ammonia  may  be  formed 
by  mixing,  over  mercury,  equal  volumes  of  ammonia  and  muriatic  acid 
gases,  which  will  be  entirely  condensed  into  a  white  solid,  which  is  the 
anhydrous  salt ;  or  it  may  be  produced  by  neutralizing  a  solution  of 
ammonia  with  solution  of  muriatic  acid.  Upon  evaporation,  the  salt 
will  be  obtained  in  crystals  containing,  in  addition,  one  equivalent  of 
water.  It  is  in  this  state  that  it  is  found  in  commerce  under  the  name 
of  sal  ammoniac. — (See  Ammonia  and  Sal  Ammoniac.) 

MURIATES  OF  TIN.— By  boiling  one  part  of  tin  with  two  of 
muriatic  acid,  a  solution  may  be  obtained,  which  yields  by  concentration 
a  crop  of  deliquescent  crystals,  which  consist  of  proto-muriate,  or  hydra- 
ted-protochloride  of  tin.  The  solution  has  a  great  attraction  for  oxygen, 
which  it  quickly  absorbs  from  the  air  and  from  several  metallic  solutions 
which  it  deoxidizes  and  revives.  It  is  used  in  the  arts  of  dyeing  and 
calico-printing.  During  the  absorption  of  oxygen  from  the  atmosphere, 
part  of  the  tin  is  thrown  down  in  the  state  of  peroxide,  and  another  part 
combines  with  a  second  equivalent  of  chlorine  or  muriatic  acid,  and 
permuriate  or  perchloride  of  tin  remains  in  solution :  the  same  solution 
may  at  once  be  obtained  by  dissolving  tin  in  nitro-muriatic  acid,  or  a 
mixture  of  nitric  acid  and  common  salt,  or  muriate  of  ammonia.  It  is 
also  much  used  by  dyers  in  producing  scarlet  with  cochineal.  The  only 
muriates  much  used  in  the  manufactures  are  Muriate  of  ammonia,  or 
Sal  Ammoniac  ;  Muriated  peroxide  of  mercury ;  Mercury,  bichlorade  of; 
Muriate  of  soda,  or  Chloride  of  sodium  ;  Muriate  of  tin. — (See  chapter 
I,  Part  III.,  article  Tin  ;  and  chapter  I,  Part  VI.) 

MURIATE  OF  ZINC— Muriatic  acid  dissolves  zinc  with  facility ; 
but  the  solution  cannot  be  made  to  crystalize.  When  kept  for  some  time 
on  the  sand  bath  till  it  ceased  to  lose  weight,  it  concreted,  on  cooling, 
into  a  white  opaque  matter,  having  a  very  strong  and  disagreeable  taste, 
and  speedily  deliquescing,  when  exposed  to  the  air.  It  was  analyzed, 
by  Dr.  Thomson,  by  dissolving  a  given  weight  in  water,  and  precipita- 
ting the  oxide  of  zinc  by  an  alkali,  and  the  muriatic  acid  by  nitrate  of 
silver.    Its  constituents  are 

1  atom  muriatic  acid 
1  atom  oxide  of  zinc 

9-875 


4-  625 

5-  25 


656 


OXG. 


[appendix. 


N. 

NAPHTHA. — A  limpid  bitumen,  which  exudes  from  the  earth  upon  the 
shores  of  the  Caspian  and  some  other  eastern  countries.  Near  the  vil- 
lage of  Amiano,  in  the  state  of  Parma,  there  exists  a  spring  which  yields 
this  substance  in  sufficient  quantity  to  illuminate  the  city  of  Genoa,  for 
which  purpose  it  is  employed.  It  has  a  peculiar  odor,  and  generally  a 
yellow  color,  but  may  be  rendered  colorless  by  distillation.  Its  specific 
gravity  is  about  0-75.  It  boils  at  about  160°.  It  is  highly  inflammable, 
burning  with  a  white  smoky  flame.  It  appears  to  be  a  compound  of  36 
of  carbon  with  5  of  hydrogen,  and  is  therefore  a  pure  hydro-carbon.  A 
liquid  very  similar  to  mineral  naphtha  is  obtained  by  the  distillation  of 
coal  tar.  It  has  sometimes  been  used  in  lamps,  but  is  apt  to  smoke. 
This  variety  of  naphtha  is  in  great  request  as  a  solvent  for  India  rubber. 

NEUTRALIZATION.— In  chemistry,  the  combination  of  an  acid 
and  alkali  in  such  proportions  that  the  peculiar  properties  of  each  are 
rendered  inert. 

NEUTRAL  SALTS. — Combinations  of  acids  and  bases  which  aie 
neither  acid  nor  alkaline,  but  in  which  the  acid  is  exactly  neutralized  by 
the  base. 

NITRATES. — Salts  of  the  nitric  acid ;  thus  nitrate  of  potassa  is  a 
compound  of  one  atom  of  nitric  acid  and  one  atom  of  potassa. 

O. 

OIL  OF  TURPENTINE,  sometimes  called  essence  of  turpentine. 
As  found  in  commerce,  it  contains  more  or  less  rosin,  from  which  it  may 
be  freed  by  re-distillation  along  with  water.  It  is  colorless,  limpid,  very 
fluid,  and  possessed  of  a  very  peculiar  smell.  Its  specific  gravity,  when 
pure,  is  0-870  ;  that  of  the  oil  commonly  sold  is  0-875.  It  always  red- 
dens litmus  paper,  from  containing  a  little  succinic  acid.  According  to 
Oppermann,  the  oil  which  has  been  repeatedly  rectified  over  chloride  of 
calcium,  consists  of  84-60  carbon,  11-735  hydrogen,  and  3-67  oxygen. 
When  oil  of  turpentine  contains  a  little  alcohol,  it  burns  with  a  clear 
flame  ;  but  otherwise  it  affords  a  very  smoky  flame.  Chlorine  inflames 
this  oil ;  and  muriatic  acid  converts  it  into  a  crystaline  substance,  like 
camphor.  It  is  employed  extensively  in  varnishes,  paints,  &c,  as  also  in 
medicine. 

OLEIC  ACID  is  the  acid  produced  by  saponifying  olive  oil,  and  then 
separating  the  base  by  dilute  sulphuric  or  muriatic  acid. 

OX-GALL. — Painters  in  water  colors,  scourers  of  cloth,  and  many 


APPENDIX.] 


OXG. 


657 


others,  employ  ox-gall  or  bile  ;  but  when  it  is  not  purified,  it  is  apt  to  do 
harm  from  the  greenness  of  its  own  tint.  It  becomes  therefore  an  impor- 
tant object  to  clarify  it,  and  to  make  it  limpid  and  transparent  like  water. 
The  following  process  has  been  given  for  that  purpose.  Take  the  gall  of 
newly  killed  oxen,  and  after  having  allowed  it  to  settle  for  12  or  15 
hours  in  a  basin,  pour  the  supernatant  liquor  off  the  sediment  into  an 
evaporating  dish  of  stone  ware,  and  expose  it  to  a  boiling  heat  in  a  water 
bath,  till  it  is  somewhat  thick.  Then  spread  it  upon  a  dish,  and  place  it 
before  a  fire  till  it  becomes  nearly  dry.  In  this  state  it  may  be  kept  for 
years  in  jelly  pots  covered  with  paper,  without  undergoing  any  alter- 
ation. When  it  is  to  be  used,  a  piece  of  it  of  the  size  of  a  pea  is  to  be 
dissolved  in  a  table  spoonful  of  water. 

Another  and  probably  a  better  mode  of  purifying  ox-gall  is  the  follow- 
ing. To  a  pint  of  the  gall  boiled  and  skimmed,  add  one  ounce  of  fine 
alum  in  powder,  and  leave  the  mixture  on  the  fire  till  the  alum  be  dis- 
solved. When  cooled,  pour  into  a  bottle,  which  is  to  be  loosely  corked. 
Now  take  a  like  quantity  of  gall,  also  boiled  and  skimmed,  add  an  ounce 
of  common  salt  to  it,  and  dissolve  with  heat ;  put  it  when  cold  into  a  bot- 
tle, which  is  likewise  to  be  loosely  corked.  Either  of  these  preparations 
may  be  kept  for  several  years  without  their  emitting  a  bad  smell.  After 
remaining  three  months,  at  a  moderate  temperature,  they  deposit  a  thick 
sediment,  and  become  clearer,  and  fit  for  ordinary  uses,  but  not  for  ar- 
tists in  water  colors  and  miniatures,  on  account  of  their  yellowish-green 
color.  To.  obviate  this  inconvenience,  each  of  the  above  liquors  is  to  be 
decanted  apart,  after  they  have  become  perfectly  settled,  and  the  clear 
portion  of  both  mixed  together  in  equal  parts.  The  yellow  coloring  mat- 
ter still  retained  by  the  mixture  coagulates  immediately  and  precipitates, 
leaving  the  ox-gall  perfectly  purified  and  colorless.  If  wished  to  be  still 
finer,  it  may  be  passed  through  filtering  paper ;  but  it  becomes  clearer 
with  age,  and  never  acquires  a  disagreeable  smell,  nor  loses  any  of  its 
good  qualities. 

Clarified  ox-gall  combines  readily  with  coloring  matters  or  pigments, 
and  gives  them  solidity  either  by  being  mixed  with  or  passed  over  them 
upon  paper.  It  increases  the  brilliancy  and  the  durability  of  ultramarine, 
carmine,  green,  and  in  general  of  all  delicate  colors,  whilst  it  contributes 
to  make  them  spread  more  evenly  upon  the  paper,  ivory,  &c.  When 
mixed  with  gum-arabic,  it  thickens  the  colors  without  communicating  to 
them  a  disagreeable  glistering  appearance;  it  prevents  the  gum  from 
cracking,  and  fixes  the  colors  so  well  that  others  may  be  applied  over 
them  without  degradation.  Along  with  lampblack  and  gum,  it  forms  a 
good  imitation  of  China  ink.  When  a  coat  of  ox-gall  is  put  upon  draw- 
ings made  with  black  lead  or  crayons,  the  lines  can  no  longer  be  effaced, 
but  may  be  painted  over  safely  with  a  variety  of  colors  previously  mixed 
up  with  the  same  ox-gall. 


658 


POT. 


[appendix. 


Miniature  painters  find  a  great  advantage  in  employing  it ;  by  passing 
it  over  ivory,  it  removes  completely  the  unctuous  matter  from  its  surface  ; 
and  when  ground  with  the  colors,  it  makes  them  spread  with  the  greatest 
ease,  and  renders  them  fast.  It  serves  also  for  transparencies.  It  is  first 
passed  over  the  varnished  or  oiled  paper,  and  is  allowed  to  dry.  The 
colors  mixed  with  the  gall  are  then  applied,  and  cannot  afterwards  be  re- 
moved by  any  means.  It  is  adapted  finally  for  taking  out  spots  of  grease 
and  oil— (See  chapter  IV.,  Part  V.) 

OXIDATION  or  OXIDIZEMENT.  —  The  act  of  combination 
with  oxygen. 

OXIDE. — Compounds  containing  oxygen,  but  which  are  not  acid, 
have  been  termed  oxides.  The  metallic  oxides  are  a  most  important 
class  of  bodies.  To  designate  the  different  oxides  of  one  base  we  gen- 
erally use  the  first  syllable  of  the  Greek  ordinal  numerals,  designating 
the  first,  second,  third,  &c.  oxides  by  the  terms  protoxide,  deutoxide,  tri- 
toxide,  &c. :  and  when  the  base  is  saturated  with  oxygen  (still  not  acid) 
it  is  termed  a  peroxide.  Compounds  of  bases  with  one  atom  and  a  half 
oxgygen,  or  of  two  base  and  three  oxygen,  are  now  generally  distinguish- 
ed by  the  term  sesquioxides. 

P.  . 

PADDING,  in  calico-printing,  is  the  impregnation  of  the  cloth  with  a 
mordant. 

PERCHLORIDE  OF  TIN.— (See  Calico- Printing.) 

PEROXIDE  OF  IRON.— (See  Mordants,  chapter  I.,  Part  III.) 

PEROXIDE  OF  TIN.— (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Tin.) 

POTASH  or  POTASSA.*— Potash  is  the  most  powerful  of  all 
the  bases,  and  forms  the  most  permanent  combinations  with  the  acids. 
For  example: — The  nitric  acid  sustains  a  much  higher  heat  without 
decomposition,  when  united  with  this  base,  than  with  any  other  ;  and  the 
vegetable  acids  also  have  their  decomposition  much  retarded  by  the  same 
combination. 


*  So  named  from  being  prepared  for  commercial  purposes  by  evaporating  in  iron  pots  the 
lixivium  of  the  ashes  of  wood  fuel.  In  the  crude  state,  called  potashes,  it  consists,  there- 
fore, of  such  constituents  of  burned  vegetables  as  are  very  soluble  in  water,  and  fixed  in  the 
fire.  The  potash  salts  of  plants  which  originally  contained  vegetable  acids,  will  be  convert, 
ed  into  carbonates,  the  sulphates  will  become  sulphites,  sulphurets.  or  even  carbonates* 
according  to  the  manner  of  incineration;  the  nitrates  will  be  changed  into  pure  carbonates, 
while  the  muriates  or  chlorides  will  remain  unaltered.  Should  quicklime  be  added  to  the 
solution  of  the  ashes,  a  corresponding  portion  of  caustic  potassa  will  be  introduced  into  the 
product,  with  more  or  less  lime,  according  to  the  care  taken  in  decanting  off  the  clear  ley  for 
evaporation. 


APPENDIX.] 


POT. 


659 


The  potash  of  commerce  is  obtained  in  an  impure  state,  by  the  incin- 
eration of  vegetable  matters,  and  hence  is  designated  as  the  vegetable 
alkali.    The  purest  is  distinguished  by  the  name  of  pearlash. 

Pearlash  is  prepared  by  calcining  potashes  upon  a  reverberatory  hearth, 
till  the  whole  carbonaceous  matter,  and  the  greater  part  of  the  sulphur, 
be  dissipated ;  then  lixiviating  the  mass,  in  a  cistern  having  a  false  bot- 
tom covered  with  straw,  evaporating  the  clear  ley  to  dryness  in  flat  iron 
pans,  and  stirring  it  towards  the  end  into  white  lumpy  granulations. 

All  kinds  of  vegetables  do  not  yield  the  same  proportion  of  potassa. 
The  more  succulent  the  plant,  the  more  does  it  afford ;  for  it  is  only  in  the 
iuices  that  the  vegetable  salts  reside,  which  are  converted  by  incineration 
into  alkaline  matter.  Herbaceous  weeds  are  more  productive  of  potash 
than  the  graminiferous  species,  or  shrubs,  and  these  than  trees ;  and  for  a 
like  reason,  twigs  and  leaves  are  more  productive  than  timber.  But 
plants  in  all  cases  are  richest  in  alkaline  salts  when  they  have  arrived  at 
maturity.  The  soil  in  which  they  grow  also  influences  the  quantity  of 
saline  matter. 

The  following  Table  exhibits  the  average  product  in  potassa  of  several 
plants,  according  to  the  researches  of  Vauquelin,  Pertuis,  Kirwan,  and 
De  Saussure : — 


In  1000  parts.  Potassa.  In  1000  parts. 

Pine  or  fir  0-45  Dry  beech  bark  6-00 

Poplar  0-75  Fern  6  26 

Trefoil  0  75  Large  Rush  7  22 

Beechwood  1-45  Stalk  of  maize  17  50 

Oak  1-53  Bastard  chamomile  (Anthemis  cotula, 

Boxwood  226j      L.)  -  19-60 

Willow   2  85  Bean  stalks  20-00 

Elm  and  maple   3  90  Sunflower  stalks     -  -20-00 

Wheat  straw   3  90  Common  nettle  25-03 


Barb  of  oak  twigs        ....  4-20 

Thistles   500 

Flax  stems  ^     -  5  00 

Small  rushes   5-08 

Vine  shoots   5-50 

Barley  straw   5  80 


Vetch  plant  27-50 

Thistles  in  full  growth  -  -  -  35  37 
Dry  straw  of  wheat  before  earing  -      -  47-00 

Wormwood   7300 

Fumitory   79  00 


Stalks  of  tobacco,  potatoes,  chestnuts,  chestnut  husks,  broom,  heath, 
furze,  tansy,  sorrel,  vine  leaves,  beet  leaves,  orach,  and  many  other 
plants,  abound  in  potash  salts.  In  Burgundy,  the  well-known  cendres 
gravelees  are  made  by  incinerating  the  lees  of  wine  pressed  into  cakes, 
and  dried  in  the  sun ;  the  ashes  contain  fully  16  per  cent,  of  potassa.* 

The  purification  of  pearlash  is  founded  upon  the  fact  of  its  being  more 
soluble  in  water  than  the  neutral  salts  which  debase  it.    Upon  any  given 


*  The  best  pink  Canadian  potashes,  as  imported  in  casks  (containing  about  5  cwta.),  con- 
tains pretty  uniformly  60  per  cent,  of  absolute  potassa ;  and  the  best  pearlashes  50  per  cent. ; 
the  alkali  in  the  former  being  nearly  in  a  caustic  state  ;  in  the  latter,  carbonated. 


660 


POT. 


(appendix. 


quantity  of  that  substance,  in  an  iron  pot,  let  one  and  a  half  times  its- 
weight  of  water  be  poured,  and  let  a  gentle  heat  be  applied  for  a  short 
time.  When  the  whole  has  again  cooled,  the  bottom  will  be  incrusted 
with  the  salts,  while  a  solution  of  nearly  pure  carbonate  of  potash  will 
be  found  floating  above,  which  may  be  drawn  off  clear  by  a  syphon. 
The  salts  may  be  afterwards  thrown  upon  a  filter  of  gravel.  If  this  ley 
be  diluted  with  6  times  its  bulk  of  water  mixed  with  as  much  slaked  lime 
as  there  was  pearlash  employed,  and  the  mixture  be  boiled  for  an  hour, 
the  potash  will  become  caustic,  by  giving  up  its  carbonic  acid  to  the  lime. 
If  the  clear  settled  lixivium  be  now  syphoned  off,  and  concentrated  by 
boiling  in  a  covered  iron  pan,  till  it  assumes  the  appearance  of  oil,  it  will 
constitute  the  common  caustic  of  the  surgeon,  the  potassa  fusa  of  the 
shops.  But  to  obtain  potassa  chemically  pure,  recourse  must  be  had  to 
the  bicarbonate,  nitrate,  or  tartrate  of  potassa,  salts  which,  when  care- 
fully crystalized,  are  exempt  from  any  thing  to  render  the  potassa  derived 
from  them  impure.  The  bicarbonate  having  been  gently  ignited  in  a 
silver  basin,  is  to  be  dissolved  in  6  times  its  weight  of  water,  and  the  so- 
lution is  to  be  boiled  for  an  hour,  along  with  one  pound  of  slacked  lime  for 
every  pound  of  the  bicarbonate  used.  The  whole  must  be  left  to  settle 
without  contact  of  air.  The  supernatant  ley  is  to  be  drawn  off  by  a 
syphon,  and  evaporated  in  an  iron  or  silver  vessel  provided  with  a  small 
orifice  in  its  close  cover  for  the  escape  of  the  steam,  till  it  assumes,  as 
above,  the  appearance  of  oil,  or  till  it  be  nearly  red-hot.  Let  the  fused 
potassa  be  now  poured  out  upon  a  bright  plate  of  iron,  cut  into  pieces  as 
soon  as  it  concretes,  and  put  up  immediately  in  a  bottle  furnished  with  a 
well  ground  stopper.  It  is  hydrate  of  potassa,  being  composed  of  1  atom 
of  potassa  48,  -f- 1  atom  of  water  9,  =  57. 

A  pure  carbonate  of  potassa  may  be  also  prepared  by  fusing  pure  nitre 
in  an  earthen  crucible,  and  projecting  charcoal  into  it  by  small  bits  at  a 
time,  till  it  ceases  to  cause  deflagration.  Or  a  mixture  of  10  parts  of 
nitre  and  1  of  charcoal  may  be  deflagrated  in  small  successive  portions  in 
a  red-hot  deep  crucible.  When  a  mixture  of  2  parts  of  tartrate  of  potassa, 
or  crystals  of  tartar,  and  1  of  nitre,  is  deflagrated,  pure  carbonate  of 
potassa  remains  mixed  with  charcoal,  which  by  lixiviation,  and  the 
agency  of  quicklime,  will  afford  a  pure  hydrate.  Crystals  of  tartar 
'•alcined  alone  yield  also  a  pure  carbonate. 

Caustic  potassa  after  being  fused  in  a  silver  crucible  at  a  red  heat, 
retains  1  prime  equivalent  of  water.  Hence  its  composition  in  100  parts 
is,  potassium  70,  oxygen  14,  water  16.  Anhydrous  potassa,  or  the  oxide 
free  from  water,  can  be  obtained  only  by  the  combustion  of  potassium  in 
the  open  air.  It  is  composed  of  831  of  metal,  and  16|  of  oxygen.  Ber- 
zelius's  numbers  are,  83*05  and  16*95. 

Caustic  potassa  may  be  crystalized  ;  but  in  general  it  occurs  as  a  white 
brittle  substance  of  spec.  grav.  1*708,  which  melts  at  a  red  heat,  evapo- 


APPENDIX.] 


POT. 


661 


rates  at  a  white  heat,  deliquesces  into  a  liquid  in  the  air,  and  attracts 
carbonic  acid  ;  is  soluble  in  water  and  alcohol,  forms  soft  soaps  with  fat 
oils,  and  soapy-looking  compounds  with  resins  and  wax ;  dissolves  sul- 
phur, some  metallic  sulphurets,  as  those  of  antimony,  arsenic,  &c,  as  also 
silica,  alumina,  and  certain  other  bases ;  and  decomposes  animal  textures, 
as  hair,  wool,  silk,  horn,  skin,  &c.  It  should  never  be  touched  with  the 
tongue  or  the  fingers. 

If  one  part  of  carbonate  of  potash  be  dissolved  in  four  parts  of  water, 
and  the  solution  be  boiled  with  slacked  lime,  the  potash  does  not  lose  the 
smallest  quantity  of  carbonic  acid;  it  does  not  become  caustic,  even 
though  lime  be  added  to  any  extent,  or  however  long  the  boiling  may  be 
continued.  If,  however,  6  parts  of  water  be  gradually  added  to  the 
above  mixture,  it  will  be  found,  and  without  farther  boiling,  that  the 
potash  loses  its  carbonic  acid  gradually  ;  and  that  after  the  addition  of 
the  last  portion  of  water,  the  potash  is  perfectly  caustic.  If  the  water 
be  added  at  once,  the  potash  becomes  very  quickly  caustic. 

This  peculiarity  is  explained,  by  the  fact,  that  concentrated  caustic 
potash  takes  carbonic  acid  from  lime.  This  fact  is  readily  proved  by 
boiling  powdered  chalk  with  concentrated  potash,  entirely  free  from  car- 
bonic acid  ;  the  solution  added  to  muriatic  acid  occasions  brisk  efferves- 
cence. M.  Liebig  states  that  the  carbonate  of  potash  which  is  to  be 
made  caustic  should  be  dissolved  in  at  least  JO  parts  of  water.* 

The  following  Table  exhibits  the  quantity  of  Fused  Potassa  in  100 
parts  of  caustic  ley,j  at  the  respective  densities  : — 


Sp.  gr. 

Pot.  in  100. 

Sp.  gr. 

Pot.  in  100. 

Sp.  gr. 

Pot.  in  100. 

Sp.  gr. 

Pot.  in  100. 

Sp.  gr. 

Pot.  in  100. 

1-58 

5306 

1-46 

42-31 

1-34 

32- 14 

1-22 

2314 

1-10 

11-28 

1-56 

5158 

1-44 

40- 17 

1-32 

3074 

1-20 

21-25 

108 

9-20 

1-54 

5009 

1-42 

37-97 

1-30 

29  34 

118 

19-34 

106 

7  02 

1-52 

48-46 

1-40 

35-99 

1-28 

27-86 

116 

17-40 

104 

4-77 

1-50 

46-45 

1-38 

34  74 

1-26 

26-34 

114 

15-38 

1-02 

2-44 

1-48 

44-40 

1-36 

33-46 

1-24 

24.77 

112 

13.30 

100 

000 

The  only  certain  way  of  determining  the  quantity  of  free  potassa  in 
any  solid  or  liquid,  is  from  the  quantity  of  a  dilute  acid  of  known  strength 
which  it  can  saturate. 

The  hydrate  of  potassa,  or  its  ley,  often  contains  a  notable  quantity  of 
carbonate,  the  presence  of  which  may  be  detected  by  lime  water,  and  its 
amount  be  ascertained  by  the  loss  of  weight  which  it  suffers,  when  a 


*  .Arm.  de  Chim.  et  de  Phys. 

t  M.  Bizio  states  that  the  best  method  of  rendering  potash  and  soda  caustic,  is  to  mix  a  so- 
lution of  one  part  of  the  dry  alkaline  carbonate  with  one  part  freshly  prepared  hydrate  of 
lime,  and  allowing  it  to  stand  in  a  close  vessel  for  twenty- four  hours,  at  a  temperature  of 
from  68  deg.  to  70  deg.  Fahr.,  shaking  it  frequently.  The  potash  salt  should  be  dissolved  in 
12  to  15,  the  soda  salt  in  7  to  15  parts  of  water  ;  the  carbonate  of  Jime  seoarates  in  a  granular 
state,  and  the  clear  caustic  ley  may  be  decanted. 


662 


PRO. 


[appendix. 


weighed  portion  of  the  ley  is  poured  into  a  weighed  portion  of  dilute  sul- 
phuric acid  poised  in  the  scale  of  a  balance. 

There  are  two  other  oxides  of  potassium ;  the  suboxide,  which  consists, 
according  to  Berzelius,  of  90-74  of  metal,  and  9-26  oxygen ;  and  the  hy- 
peroxide,  an  orange-yellow  substance,  which  gives  off  oxygen  in  the  act 
of  dissolving  in  water,  and  becomes  potassa.  It  consists  of  62  of  metal, 
and  38  of  oxygen. 

Carbonate  of  potassa  is  composed  of  48  parts  of  base,  and  22  of  acid, 
according  to  most  British  authorities :  or,  in  100  parts,  of  68*57  and 
31-43  ;  but  according  to  Berzelius,  of  68-09  and  31-91. 

Carbonate  of  potassa,  as  it  exists  associated  with  carbon  in  calcined 
tartar,  passes  very  readily  into  the  Bicarbonate,*  on  being  moistened  with 
water,  and  having  a  current  of  carbonic  acid  gas  passed  through  it.  The 
absorption  takes  place  so  rapidly,  that  the  mass  becomes  hot,  and  there- 
fore ought  to  be  surrounded  with  cold  water.  The  salt  should  then  be 
dissolved  in  the  smallest  quantity  of  water  at  120°  F.,  filtered,  and 
crystalized. 

POTTER'S  CLAY,  or  PLASTIC  CLAY.— This  species  is  com- 
pact, soft,  or  even  unctuous  to  the  touch,  and  polishes  with  the  pressure 
of  the  finger ;  it  forms,  with  water,  a  tenacious,  very  ductile,  and  some- 
what translucent  paste.  It  is  infusible  in  a  porcelain  kiln,  but  assumes 
in  it  a  great  degree  of  hardness.  Werner  calls  it  pipe-clay.  Good  plas- 
tic clay  remains  white,  or  if  gray  before,  becomes  white  in  the  porcelain 
kiln. — (See  Clay.) 

PRECIPITATE. — A  result  of  chemical  decomposition,  in  which  a 
substance  is  thrown  down  in  a  solid,  and  generally  in  a  finely  divided  state, 
from  a  liquid. 

PRECIPITATION,  is  the  actual  subsidence  of  a  precipitate. 

PROTOXIDE  OF  COPPER,  or  RED  OXIDE  OF  COPPER  : 
its  color  is  a  deep  red,  sometimes  very  lively,  especially  when  bruised. 
It  is  friable,  difficult  of  fusion  at  the  blowpipe,  reducible  on  burning 
charcoal,  soluble  with  effervescence  in  nitric  acid,  forming  a  green  liquid. 
Its  constitution,  when  pure,  is  88-9  copper  +  11-1  oxygen  =  100. f 

PROTOXIDE  OF  IRON.— (See  chapter  IV.,  Part  I.,  and  chapter 
I.,  Part  III.) 

PROTOXIDE  OF  TIN.— (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Tin.) 


*  When  a  solution  of  the  bicarbonate  of  potash  is  boiled  till  carbonic  acid  is  no  longer 
given  off,  it  forms,  on  cooling,  deliquescent  crystals,  which  are  insoluble  in  alcohol.  They 
contain  six  equivalents  of  water,  and  one  and  a  half  equivalent  of  acid  to  one  of  the  base. 
The  same  salt  may  be  procured  by  dissolving  100  parts  of  carbonate,  and  131  parts  of  bicar- 
bonate of  potash  in  water. 

t  Black  oxide  of  copper  is  of  a  velvet  black,  inclining  sometimes  to  brown  or  blue ;  and  it 
acquires  the  metallic  lustre  on  being  rubbed.  It  is  infusible  at  the  blowpipe.  Its  composition 
is,  copper  80  -f-  oxygen  20;  being  a  true  peroxide. 


APPENDIX.]  PRU.  663 

PUTREFACTION.— The  decomposition  of  animal  bodies,  or  of 
such  plants  as  contain  azote  in  their  composition,  which  takes  place  spon- 
taneously when  they  are  exposed  to  the  air,  under  the  influence  of  mois- 
ture and  warmth,  is  called  putrefaction.  During  this  process,  there  is  a 
complete  transposition  of  the  proximate  principles,  the  elementary  sub- 
stances combining  in  new  and  principally  gaseous  compounds.  Oxygen 
is  absorbed  from  the  atmosphere,  and  converted  into  carbonic  acid ;  one 
portion  of  the  hydrogen  forms  water  with  the  oxygen ;  another  portion 
forms,  with  the  azote,  the  carbon,  the  phosphorus,  and  the  sulphur  re- 
spectively, ammonia,  carbureted,  phosphureted,  and  sulphureted  hydro- 
gen gases,  which  occasion  the  nauseous  smell  evolved  by  putrefying 
bodies.  There  remains  a  friable  earthy-looking  residuum,  consisting  of 
rotton  mould  and  charcoal.  Vegetables  which  contain  no  azote,  like  the 
ligneous  part  of  plants,  suffer  their  corresponding  decomposition  much 
more  slowly,  and  with  different  modifications,  but  they  are  finally  con- 
verted into  vegetable  mould.  In  this  process,  the  juices  with  which  the 
plants  are  filled  first  enter  into  the  acetous  fermentation  under  the  action 
of  heat  and  moisture ;  the  acid  thereby  generated  destroys  the  cohesion 
of  the  fibrous  matter,  and  thus  reduces  the  solids  to  a  pulpy  state.  In 
the  progress  of  the  decomposition,  a  substance  is  lastly  produced  which 
resembles  oxidized  extractive,  is  soluble  in  alkalies,  and  is  sometimes 
called  mould.  This  decompositions  of  the  plant  which  contain  no  azote, 
goes  on  without  any  offensive  smell,  as  none  of  the  above-named  nau- 
seous gases  are  disengaged.  When  vegetable  matters  are  mixed  with  an- 
imal, as  in  the  dung  of  cattle,  this  decomposition  proceeds  more  rapidly, 
because  the  animalized  portion  serves  as  a  ferment  to  the  vegetable. 
Vegetable  acids,  resins,  fats,  and  volatilized  oils,  are  not  of  themselves 
subject  to  putrefaction. 

PRUSSIAN  BLUE  {rendered  more  soluble). — We  are  indebted  to 
Messrs.  Nash  and  Stephens,  of  London,  for  the  following  process  of  treating, 
or  operating  upon  Prussian  blue,  so  as  to  render  it  more  perfectly  soluble, 
or  more  readily  disposed  to  be  acted  upon  by  the  subsequent  process  of 
solution,  than  when  manufactured  in  the  usual  way.  This  most  de- 
sirable object,  these  gentlemen  tell  us  they  effect  in  the  following  man- 
ner : — 

"  We  take  the  Prussian  blue,  whether  produced  from  a  combination  of  prussiate  of  potash 
and  salts  of  iron,  or  the  Prussian  blue  of  commerce,  as  commonly  manufactured,  and  we  put 
this  into  an  earthen  vessel,  and  pour  over  it  a  quantity  of  strongly-concentrated  acid,  suffi- 
cient to  cover  the  Prussian  blue.  Muriatic  acid,  sulphuric  acid,  or  any  other  acid  which  has 
a  sufficient  action  upon  iron,  will  do.  If  sulphuric  acid  is  used,  it  should  be  diluted  a  little, 
that  is,  with  a  quantity  of  water  equal  to  about  its  bulk  at  the  time  when  the  mass  turns 
white  after  the  Prussian  blue  is  put  in.  The  Prussian  blue  is  to  be  allowed  to  remain  in  the 
acid  from  twenty-four  to  forty-eight  hours  or  longer.  We  then  dilute  this  mixture  with  a 
large  quantity  of  water,  stirring  it  up  at  the  time  for  the  purpose  of  washing  from  it  the  salts 
of  iron.  When  in  this  state  of  dilution  we  suffer  it  to  stand  until  the  color  has  subsided, 
when  the  supernatant  liquor  is  to  be  drawn  off  with  a  syphon,  and  more  water  added  to  it, 


664 


RED. 


[appendix. 


and  we  continue  the  repetition  of  this  process  until  we  judge  that  the  acid  with  the  iron  has 
been  completely  washed  away,  and  this  is  known  by  testing  it  with  prussiate  of  potash, 
which  will  show  if  it  yields  any  blue  precipitate,  if  not  it  is  sufficiently  washed  ;  we  then 
place  it  upon  a  filter  and  suffer  it  to  remain  until  the  liquid  has  all  drained  away.  The  Prus- 
sian blue  thus  prepared  is  reduced  to  a  state  as  we  conceive,  containing  les6  iron  than  the 
Prussian  blue  of  commerce,  in  which  state  it  is  more  readily  acted  upon  and  rendered  soluble 
than  in  any  other  condition.  This  Prussian  blue  may  be  then  placed  in  evaporating  dishes 
and  gently  dried.  To  form  the  Prussian  blue  so  operated  upon,  into  a  solution,  we  add  to  it 
oxalic  acid,  and  mix  them  carefully  together,  after  which  we  add  cold  water  (cold  distilled 
water  is  best)  a  little  at  a  time,  making  into  a  dense  or  dilute  solution  according  to  the  color 
required.  The  quantity  of  oxalic  acid  may  vary  according  to  the  quantity  of  water  used. 
It  will  be  found  that  the  Prussian  blue  that  has  undergone  the  process  of  digestion  as  descri- 
bed, requires  but  a  small  quantity  of  oxalic  acid,  to  dissolve  it.  About  one  part  of  oxalic  acid 
will  dissolve  six  parts  of  Prussian  blue  (the  weight  being  taken  before  digesting  in  the  acid) ; 
this  will  answer  for  a  concentrated  solution,  but  for  a  dilute  solution  more  acid  will  be  re- 
quired." 

Prussian  blue  that  has  not  undergone  digestion  in  acid,  in  the  way 
above  pointed  out,  will  require  a  much  larger  portion  of  oxalic  acid, 
from  twice  to  three  times  its  weight,  and  even  then  it  will  be  greatly  li- 
able to  precipitate  after  standing;  but  when  treated  in  the  way  de- 
scribed, it  is  not,  according  to  Messrs.  Nash  and  Stephens,  liable  to  pre- 
cipitate, but  remains  a  permanent  solution. 

"  The  chief  obstacle  to  the  general  employment  of  the  beautiful  color 
obtained  by  means  of  the  ferro-prussiates  to  the  purposes  of  dyeing,  says 
these  gentlemen,  has  been  its  hitherto  supposed  insoluble  nature  ;  but  by 
means  of  oxalic  acid  (whether  obtained  by  the  usual  process  of  mixing 
or  distilling  saccharine  matter  in  combination  with  nitric  acid,  or  from 
vegetable  or  other  substances  containing  oxalic  acid,  or  from  combinations 
of  oxalates,  whether  metallic,  earthy,  or  alkaline)  we  obtain  the  above 
perfect  solution  of  the  Prussian  blue,  which  is  applicable  to  dyeing,  color- 
ing, or  staining  in  the  various  manufactures  of  woolens,  silks,  linen,  cot- 
ton, paper,  and  such  other  substances  as  are  required  to  be  dyed  or 
stained." — (See  chapter  V.,  Part  III.,  and  chapter  III.,  Part  V.) 

PYROMETER  is  the  name  of  an  instrument  for  measuring  high  de- 
grees of  heat  above  the  range  of  the  mercurial  thermometer.  Wedge- 
wood's  is  the  one  commonly  referred  to  by  writers  upon  porcelain  and 
metallurgy,  but  a  better  one  might  be  easily  contrived. 

R. 

RED  LIQUOR  AND  ACETATE  OF  ALUMINA.— Red  liquor 
is  much  more  extensively  employed  as  a  mordant  than  any  other  prepara- 
tion of  alumina.  The  common  method  of  preparing  this  liquid  for  the  use 
of  the  dyer  and  calico-printer  is  by  adding  a  solution  of  acetate  of 
lead  or  acetate  of  lime  to  a  solution  of  alum,  when  a  portion  of  the  sul- 
phuric acid  of  the  alum  combines  with  the  oxide  of  lead  or  the  lime  of 


APPENDIX.] 


RED. 


665 


the  acetate  to  form  an  insoluble  sulphate,  and  the  acetic  acid  previously 
in  combination  with  oxide  of  lead  or  lime  combines  with  alumina  to  form 
a  soluble  acetate.  To  produce  complete  decomposition  both  of  the  sul- 
phate of  alumina  and  the  sulphate  of  potash  in  the  alum,  with  formation 
of  sulphate  of  lead  and  acetates  of  alumina  and  potash, 

478  parts,  or  1  eq.  of  alum,  require 

756  parts,  or  4  eqs.  of  crystalized  acetate  of  lead. 

And  for  the  complete  decomposition  only  of  the  sulphate  of  alumina  in 
the  alum, 

478  parts,  or  1  eq.  of  alum,  require 

567  parts,  or  3  eqs.  of  crystalized  acetate  of  lead. 

The  reactions  which  occur  on  mixing  solutions  of  these  materials  in  the 
latter  proportions  are  expressed  in  the  following  diagram  : — 

il  eq.  sulphate  of  potash 
24  eqs.  water 
1  eq.  sulphate  (  l  ecl-  a]uf™  1  ^  acetate 
of  alumina   ]  3  eqs.  sulphu-  /      of  alumina 

(       ric  acid  -  -  \  / 


3  eqs.   f    9  eqs.  water 
acetate )     3  eqs.  acetic  acid    -    -    -  ■ 

of  lead  (    3  eqs.  oxide  of  lead   -    -  — 5*  3  eqs. 

sulphate  of  lead. 

But  the  quantity  of  acetate  of  lead  employed  in  the  preparation  of  red  li- 
quor is  never  greater  than  that  of  the  alum,  and  commonly  one-third 
less,  the  proportions  being  slightly  varied  according  to  the  purposes  for 
which  the  mordant  is  required.  A  small  quantity  of  carbonate  of  soda 
(from  one-twentieth  to  one-tenth  of  the  weight  of  the  alum)  is  also  some- 
times added  to  the  mixture  to  separate  a  portion  of  the  sulphuric  acid 
contained  in  the  excess  of  alum. 

The  following  proportions  of  the  materials  afford  a  strong  mordant  of 
specific  gravity  about  20°  Twaddell*  (1,100),  well  adapted  for  producing 
dark  reds  with  madder. 

No.  h 

5  gallons  of  water, 
10  pounds  of  alum, 

1  pound  of  soda  crystals, 
10  pounds  of  acetate  of  lead. 

The  alum  is  first  dissolved  in  boiling  water,  and  to  this  solution  the 
soda  is  added  gradually ;  when  the  effervescence  is  subsided,  the  acetate 
of  lead  is  added  in  a  state  of  fine  powder,  and  the  mixture  having  been 


*  Degrees  on  TwaddelPs  hydrometer  may  be  converted  into  the  ordinary  sp.  gr.  formula 
(water  being  1,000)  by  multiplying  them  by  5  and  adding  1,000. 


666 


RED. 


[appendix. 


well  agitated  is  allowed  to  stand  for  the  sulphate  of  lead  to  settle,  after 
which  the  supernatant  liquid  may  be  decanted  for  use. 

A  red  liquor,  better  adapted  than  the  above  for  producing  a  yellow 
dye  with  the  coloring  matter  of  quercitron,  may  be  made  by  mixing,  in 
the  same  manner, 

No.  2. 
5  gallons  of  water, 
10  pounds  of  alum, 
1  pound  of  soda, 
7X  pounds  of  acetate  of  lead. 

Inconsequence  of  the  expense  of  acetate  of  lead,  this  salt  is  commonly 
superseded,  in  the  preparation  of  red  liquor,  by  acetate  of  lime,  obtained 
by  neutralizing  with  quick-lime  the  crude  acetic  acid  or  pyroligneous 
acid  afforded  by  the  distillation  of  wood  ;  but  the  red  liquor  thus  pre- 
pared does  not  produce  with  coloring  matters  such  delicate  and  bright 
shades  as  that  prepared  by  acetate  of  lead.  The  usual  proportions  of 
acetate  of  lime  and  alum  employed  for  this  purpose  are  two  pounds  and 
a  half  of  the  latter  to  a  gallon  of  solution  of  the  former  of  specific  grav- 
ity 12°  or  13°  Twaddell.  As  met  with  in  commerce,  red  liquor  usually 
has  a  spec.  grav.  about  18°  Twad. 

The  following  mode  of  preparing  red  liquor  by  acetate  of  lime  is  re- 
commended by  M.  Kcechlin-Schouch  (Bulletin  de  la  Societe  Industrielle 
de  Mulhausen,  t.  i.  p.  277.)  In  twenty-five  gallons  of  hot  water  dissolve 
two  hundred  pounds  of  alum,  and  to  the  solution  add  three  hundred  pounds 
of  the  crude  solution  of  acetate  of  lime  of  specific  gravity  16°  Twad, 
The  resulting  red  liquor  has  the  density,  while  hot,  of  22°  Twad.,  but  on 
cooling  it  deposites  crystals  of  alum,  and  falls  in  specific  gravity  to  18° 
Twad. 

In  neither  of  the  preceding  preparations  is  sufficient  acetate  of  lead  or 
acetate  of  lime  employed  to  decompose  the  whole  of  the  sulphate  of 
alumina  in  the  alum,  and  it  is  doubtful,  moreover,  whether  acetate  of 
lime,  in  any  quantity,  would  effect  the  complete  decomposition  of  sul- 
phate of  alumina.  But  this  undecomposed  alum  or  sulphate  of  alumina, 
instead  of  being  useless  as  some  have  supposed,  forms  a  highly  important 
constituent  of  the  mixture.  By  its  action  on  the  acetate  of  alumina  in 
the  solution,  it  gives  rise  to  the  formation  of  subsulphate  of  alumina 
or  basic  alum,  and  free  acetic  acid,  and  the  latter  serves  to  retain 
the  former  in  a  state  of  more  permanent  solution  than  water  would 
alone. 

On  applying  heat  to  red  liquor,  a  precipitate  of  subsulphate  of  alumina 
is  produced  in  the  liquid,  containing,  according  to  the  analysis  of  M. 
Kcechlin-Schouch,  eight  equivalents  of  alumina  and  three  equivalents  of 
sulphuric  acid,  or,  eight  times  as  much  alumina  as  the  neutral  sulphate 
in  common  alum.     The  temperature  at  which  the  precipitation  com- 


APPENDIX.] 


SAL. 


667 


mences  varies  according  to  the  strength  of  the  liquor  and  the  proportions 
of  acetate  of  lead  and  alum  employed  in  its  preparation.  When  made 
as  No.  1,  page  665,  the  precipitation  commences  at  about  154°  Fahr.  If 
the  source  of  heat  is  withdrawn  soon  after  the  precipitate  appears,  so  as 
to  avoid  the  evaporation  of  acetic  acid  and  the  aggregation  of  the  pre- 
cipitate, the  latter  completely  redissolves  as  the  liquid  cools ;  but  if  the 
heating  is  continued  until  a  sensible  quantity  of  the  acetic  acid  is  evapo- 
rated and  the  precipitate  is  become  dense,  the  subsulphate  does  not  re- 
dissolve  on  cooling,  nor  even  on  the  addition  of  free  acetic  acid.  Such  a 
precipitation  of  insoluble  subsulphate,  accompanied  with  the  evaporation 
of  acetic  acid,  always  occurs  during  the  drying  and  "  ageing"  of  cottons 
printed  with  red  liquors.* 

A  solution  of  pure  acetate  of  alumina  obtained  by  dissolving  recently 
precipitated  hydrate  of  alumina  in  acetic  acid  is  uncrystalizable,  and 
dries,  on  evaporation,  into  a  gummy  mass,  very  soluble  in  water.  The 
aqueous  solution  of  the  pure  acetate  may  be  boiled  without  decompo- 
sition ;  but  if  a  solution  of  alum  is  added  to  acetate  of  alumina,  so  as  to 
form  a  mixture  analogous  to  red  liquor,  the  liquid  affords,  on  the  appli- 
cation of  heat,  a  precipitate  of  subsulphate,  of  the  same  composition  as 
that  produced  from  common  red  liquor,  which  redissolves  on  the  cooling 
of  the  liquid  if  the  acetic  acid  has  not  been  expelled. 

Acetate  of  alumina  made  without  excess  of  alum  is  very  rarely  used 
as  a  mordant,  the  proportions  of  alum  and  acetate  of  lead  employed  in 
almost  all  cases  being  four  parts  of  the  former  to  three  parts  of  the  latter. 
The  chief  use  of  the  pure  acetate,  or  rather  of  the  mixture  of  pure  ace- 
tate with  sulphate  of  potash,  such  as  is  obtained  by  mixing  eight  parts 
of  alum  with  nine  and  a  half  parts  of  acetate  of  lead,  is  to  add  to  mix- 
tures for  topical  colors  containing  a  strong  acid,  such  as  muriatic,  sulphu- 
ric, or  nitric,  in  the  free  state.  The  strong  acid  combines  with  the  alu- 
mina of  the  acetate,  and  liberates  acetic  acid,  which  exerts  no  corrosive 
action  on  the  fibre  of  the  cloth,  f 

s. 

SAL  AMMONIAC. — The  manufacture  of  this  salt  may  be  traced 
to  the  remotest  era.  Its  name  is  derived  from  Ammonia,  or  the  temple 
of  Jupiter  Ammon,  in  Egypt,  near  to  which  the  salt  was  originally 
made.  Sal  ammoniac  exists  ready  formed  in  several  animal  products. 
The  dung  and  urine  of  camels  contain  a  sufficient  quantity  to  have  ren- 

*  Concentrated  red  liquor  deposits  a  small  quantity  of  the  bisulphate  of  alumina  at  com- 
mon temperatures,  if  kept  for  a  considerable  time.  The  precipitate  thus  gradually  formed  is 
sometimes  too  aggregated  to  be  redissolved  on  the  application  of  acetic  acid . 

t  App.ied  Chemistry,  p.  114. 


668 


SAL. 


[appendix. 


dered  its  extraction  from  them  a  profitable  Egyptian  art  in  former  times,  in 
order  to  supply  Europe  with  the  article.  In  that  part  of  Africa,  fuel 
being  very  scarce,  recourse  is  had  to  the  dung  of  these  animals,  which  is 
dried  for  that  purpose,  by  plastering  it  upon  the  walls.  When  this  is 
afterwards  burned  in  a  peculiar  kind  of  furnace,  it  exhales  a  thick  smoke, 
replete  with  sal  ammoniac  in  vapor ;  the  soot  of  course  contains  a  por- 
tion of  that  salt,  condensed  along  with  other  products  of  combustion.  In 
every  part  of  Egypt,  but  especially  in  the  Delta,  peasants  are  seen 
driving  asses  loaded  with  bags  of  that  soot,  on  their  way  to  the  sal 
ammoniac  works. 

The  best  white  sal  ammoniac  is  in  spheroidal  cakes  of  about  one  foot 
diameter,  three  or  four  inches  thick  in  the  middle,  somewhat  thinner  at 
the  edges,  and  is  semi-transparent  or  translucent.  Each  lump  weighs 
about  one  quarter  of  a  cwt.  As  it  is  easily  volatilized  by  heat,  it  may 
be  readily  examined  as  to  its  sophistication  with  other  salts.  Sal  ammo- 
niac has  a  certain  tenacity,  and  is  flexible  under  the  hammer  or  pestle. — 
(See  chapter  L,  Part  IV.) 

SALOP.— (See  Calico  Printing.) 

SALT. — This  term,  though  in  ordinary  language  limited  to  common 
salt,  or  sea  salt,  is  applied  in  chemistry  to  all  combinations  of  acids  with 
alkaline  or  salifiable  bases.  The  term  has  also  been  extended  to  certain 
binary  combinations  of  chlorine,  iodine,  bromine,  and  fluorine  with  the 
metals ;  and  these  have  been  called  haloid  salts,  inasmuch  as  modern 
chemistry  has  taught  us  that  sea  salt  belongs  to  this  class.  Certain  defi- 
nite combinations  of  the  sulphurets  with  each  other  have  of  late  been 
called  sulphur  salts  ;  but  the  former  appellation  of  double  sulphurets  is, 
perhaps,  more  properly  applicable  to  such  compounds.  Sea  salt  is  a 
compound  of  1  equivalent  of  sodium  =  24,  and  1  of  chlorine  =  36 ;  its 
equivalent,  therefore,  is  (24  -j-  36)  ===  60  :  and  it  is  a  chloride  of  sodium. 
The  circumstances  which  gave  rise  to  the  notion  of  its  containing  muriatic 
acid  and  soda,  and  being  therefore  a  muriate  of  soda,  will  be  apparent  by 
reference  to  the  article  Muriatic  Acid,  chapter  V.,  Part  I. 

The  nomenclature  of  salts  has  reference  to  the  acids  which  they  con- 
tain ;  sulphates,  nitrates,  carbonates,  &c,  implying  salts  of  the  sulphuric, 
nitric,  and  carbonic  acids.  The  termination  ate  implies  the  maximum 
of  oxygen  in  the  acids,  and  ite  the  minimum  :  thus  the  salts  of  sulphurous 
and  nitrous  acids  are  called  sulphites  and  nitrites.  When  salts  contain  1 
equivalent  of  acid  and  1  of  base,  they  are  called  neutral  salts  ;  where 
1  equivalent  of  acid  is  combined  with  2  of  base,  they  are  termed  basic 
salts,  subsalts,  or  disalts  ;  and  where  there  are  2  equivalents  of  acid  and 
1  of  base,  the  salt  is  a  supersalt,  or  bisalt.  Thus,  the  terms  subacetate 
and  diacetate  of  lead  are  synonymous :  so  are  super  carbonate  and  bi- 
carbonate of  potash.  Many  salts  are  hydrous  ;  that  is,  they  contain  a 
definite  proportion  of  water  of  crystalization ;  others  are  destitute  of 


APPENDIX.] 


SOA. 


669 


water,  and  are  dry  or  anhydrous  salts.  Some  salts  attract  moisture 
when  exposed  to  air,  and  are  said  to  be  deliquescent ;  others  suffer  their 
water  to  escape  and  become  opaque,  or  pulverulent :  they  are  called 
efflorescent  salts. 

SALT,  MICROCOSMIC,  is  the  triple  phosphate  of  soda  and  am- 
monia. 

SALT  OF  LEMONS,  is  citric  acid. 
SALT  OF  SATURN,  is  acetate  of  lead. 
SALT  OF  SODA,  is  carbonate  of  soda. 
SALT  OF  SORREL,  is  bi-oxalate  of  potassa. 
SALT  OF  TARTAR,  is  carbonate  of  potassa. 
SALT  OF  VITRIOL,  is  sulphate  of  zinc. 
SALT  PERL  ATE,  is  phosphate  of  soda. 
SALTPETRE,  is  nitre,  or  nitrate  of  potassa. 

SATURATION  is  the  term  at  which  any  body  has  taken  its  full 
dose  or  chemical  proportion  of  any  other  with  which  it  can  combine ;  as 
water  with  a  salt,  or  an  acid  with  an  alkali  in  the  neutro-saline  state. 

SCHEELE'S  GREEN  is  a  pulverulent  arsenite  of  copper,  which 
may  be  prepared  as  follows  : — Form,  first,  an  arsenite  of  potassa,  by  ad- 
ding gradually  11  ounces  of  arsenious  acid  to  2  pounds  of  carbonate  of 
potassa,  dissolved  in  10  pounds  of  boiling  water ;  next,  dissolve  2  pounds 
of  crystalized  sulphate  of  copper  in  30  pounds  of  water;  filter  each  solu- 
tion, then  pour  the  first  progressively  into  the  second,  as  long  as  it  pro- 
duces a  rich  grass-green  precipitate.  This  being  thrown  upon  a  filter- 
cloth,  and  edulcorated  with  warm  water,  will  afford  1  pound  6  ounces  of 
this  beautiful  pigment.  It  consists  of,  oxide  of  copper  28*51,  and  of 
arsenious  acid  71*46.  This  green  is  applied  by  an  analogous  double 
decomposition  to  cloth. 

SILICATES  are  compounds  of  silicic  acid  (silica),  with  the  bases 
alumina,  lime,  magnesia,  potassa,  soda,  &c.  They  constitute  the  greater 
number  by  far  of  the  hard  minerals  which  incrust  the  terrestrial  globe. 
Thus  cyanite  is  a  subsilicate  of  alumina ;  feldspar  and  leucite,  are  sili- 
cates of  alumina  and  potassa ;  albite  and  analcime,  are  silicates  of 
alumina  and  soda;  stilbite,  prehnite,  mesolite,  labradorite,  tourmaline, 
mica,  &c,  are  silicates  of  alumina  and  lime ;  chrysolite,  steatite,  serpen- 
tine, and  meerschaum,  are  silicates  of  magnesia ;  augite  and  hornblende, 
are  silicates  of  lime  and  magnesia,  &c. 

SOAP. — The  chemical  nature  of  soap  has  been  laboriously  examined 
by  Chevreul,  who  has  shown  that  the  alkali  in  the  process  of  saponifica- 
tion converts  the  oil  into  peculiar  acids,  as  he  terms  them ;  the  elain  of 
the  oil  forming  oleic  acid,  and  the  stearine  margaric  acid :  so  that  soluble 
soaps  are  oleates  and  margarates  of  soda  and  potash.  He  has  enumera- 
ted several  other  fatty  acids  similarly  produced. 

All  new  soaps  contain  a  considerable  portion  of  adhering  water,  a 


670 


SOD. 


[appendix. 


great  part  of  which  they  lose  when  kept  in  a  dry  place ;  hence  the 
economy  and  excellence  of  old  soap ;  and  hence  the  dealers  in  soap  gene- 
rally keep  it  in  a  damp  cellar,  that  it  may  not  lose  weight  by  evaporation ; 
or,  as  it  is  said,  sometimes  immerse  it  in  brine,  which  does  not  dissolve  it, 
but  keeps  it  in  its  utmost  state  of  humidity. 

Soap  may  be  considered  as  a  necessary  of  life ;  in  all  civilized  coun- 
tries its  consumption  is  immense.  According  to  Pliny,  the  invention  of 
soap  must  be  ascribed  to  the  Gauls,  by  whom,  he  says,  it  was  composed 
of  tallow  and  ashes,  though  the  German  soap  was  considered  the  best. 
Hence  the  Latin  sapo,  which  by  a  slight  transposition  of  letters  has  be- 
come soap,  is  probably  derived  from  the  old  German  sepe  (now  written 
seife.) 

Mrs.  Laura  Laughton,  of  Everton,  County  of  Nottingham,  obtained  a 
patent  in  November,  1845,  for  "  certain  improvements  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  soap."  The  invention  consists  in  combining  with  soap,  which 
has  been  made  in  the  ordinary  manner,  a  solution  prepared  from  quick- 
lime, fullers'  earth,  and  water. 

The  mode  of  preparing  the  solution  is  as  follows: — Upon  one  pound  of 
quick-lime,  two  gallons  of  cold  rain  water  are  poured,  and,  after  standing 
for  about  twelve  hours,  the  clear  lime  water  is  drawn  off ;  then,  on  four 
ounces  of  fullers'  earth,  two  gallons  of  boiling  rain  water  are  poured,  and 
the  two  solutions  are  mixed  together.  One  pint  of  the  combined  solution 
is  added  to  each  pound  of  soap,  when  in  a  melted  state,  and  thoroughly 
combined  therewith  by  stirring ;  when  cool,  the  mixture  is  fit  for  use. 

Several  other  patents  have  been  granted  within  a  few  years  past,  "  for 
improvements  in  the  manufacture  of  soap,"  and  "  for  substitutes  for 
soap,"  but  those  processes  do  not  seem  to  have  answered  the  purposes 
proposed  by  the  different  patentees,  and  consequently  nearly  all  those 
ichemes  by  which  they  expected  to  realise  immense  fortunes,  have  fallen 
>snto  disuse  or  become  altogether  extinct. 

SODA,  Caustic  soda,  is  an  alkaline  substance,  used  in  chemical  re- 
searches, in  bleaching,  and  in  the  manufacture  of  soap.  It  is  prepared 
by  boiling  a  solution  of  crystalized  carbonate  of  soda  in  4  or  5  parts  of 
water,  with  half  its  weight  of  recently  slacked  and  sifted  lime.  At  the 
end  of  half  an  hour,  the  vessel  of  iron,  porcelain,  or  preferably  silver, 
may  be  removed  from  the  fire,  and  covered  carefully,  till  the  calcareous 
matter  has  settled  into  a  solid  magma  at  the  bottom.  The  clear  super- 
natant ley  may  then  be  decanted  into  bottles  for  use  in  the  liquid  state, 
or  evaporated,  out  of  contact  of  air,  till  it  assumes  an  oily  appearance, 
then  poured  upon  an  iron  or  marble  slab,  broken  into  pieces,  and  put  up 
in  vials  secured  with  greased  stoppers  or  corks. 

Caustic  soda  is  a  white  brittle  mass,  of  a  fibrous  texture,  a  specific 
gravity  of  1-536,  melting  at  a  heat  under  redness,  having  a  most  corrosive 
taste  and  action  upon  animal  matters,  dissolving  readily  in  both  water 


APPENDIX.] 


STA. 


671 


and  alcohol,  attracting  carbonic  acid  when  exposed  to  the  atmosphere, 
but  hardly  any  water,  and  falling  thereby  into  an  efflorescent  carbonate; 
it  forms  soaps  with  tallow,  oils,  wax,  rosin ;  dissolves  wool,  hair,  silk, 
horn,  alumina,  silica,  sulphur,  and  some  metallic  sulphurets.  It  consists 
of  77-66  soda,  and  22-34  water.  A  solution  of  caustic  soda  affords  no 
precipitate  with  solution  of  chloride  of  platinum,  or  tartaric  acid,  as  a 
solution  of  caustic  potash  never  fails  to  do. 

The  following  Table  of  the  quantity  of  Caustic  Soda  contained  in 
Leys  of  different  densities,  has  been  given  by  Richter : — 


Spec. 

Soda 

Spec. 

Soda 

Spec. 

Soda 

Spec. 

Soda 

grav. 

per  cent. 

grav. 

per  cent. 

grav. 

per  cent. 

grav. 

per  cent. 

1-00 

0-00 

112 

11.10 

1-22 

20-66 

1  32 

29-96 

102 

2-07 

1-14 

12-81 

1-24 

22-58 

1-34 

31-67 

104 

402 

116 

14-73 

1-26 

24-47 

1-35 

3240 

106 

5-89 

1-18 

16-73 

1-28 

26-33 

1-36 

3308 

1-08 

7-69 

1-30 

18-71 

1-30 

28- 16 

1-38 

34-41 

110 

9-43 

Crystalized  carbonate  of  soda  contains  62f  per  cent,  of  water.  The 
crystals  are  colorless  transparent  rhomboids,  which  readily  effloresce  in 
the  air,  and  melt  in  their  own  water  of  crystalization.  On  decanting  the 
liquid  from  the  fused  mass,  it  is  found  that  one  part  of  the  salt  has  given 
up  its  water  of  crystalization  to  another.  By  evaporation  of  that  fluid, 
crystals  containing  one-fifth  less  water  than  the  common  carbonate  are 
obtained.    These  do  not  effloresce  in  the  air. 

SPECIFIC  GRAVITY,  designates  the  relative  weights  of  different 
bodies  under  the  same  bulk ;  thus  a  cubic  foot  of  water  weighs  1000 
ounces  avoirdupois;  a  cubic  foot  of  coal,  1350;  a  cubic  foot  of  cast-iron, 
7,280  ;  a  cubic  foot  of  silver,  10,400  ;  and  a  cubic  foot  of  pure  gold,  19,200  ; 
numbers  which  represent  the  specific  gravities  of  the  respective  sub- 
stances, compared  to  water  =  1-000. — (See  Areometer  of  Baume.) 

STARCH,  is  a  white  pulverulent  substance,  composed  of  microscopic 
spheroids,  which  are  bags  containing  the  amylaceous  matter.  It  exists 
in  a  great  many  different  plants,  and  varies  merely  in  the  form  and  size 
of  its  microscopic  particles ;  as  found  in  some  plants,  it  consists  of  spher- 
ical particles  -j^Vo  °f  an  mcn  ^n  diameter ;  and  in  others,  of  ovoid  par- 
ticles, of  gig-  or  of  an  inch.  It  occurs,  1.  in  the  seeds  of  all  the  acotyle- 
dinous  plants,  among  which  are  the  several  species  of  corns,  and  those  of 
other  graminees;  2.  in  the  round  perennial  tap-roots,  which  shoot  up  an 
annual  stem ;  in  the  tuberose  roots,  such  as  potatoes,  the  Convolvulus 
batatas  and  edulis,  the  Helianthus  tuberosus,  the  Jatropha  manihot,  &c, 
which  contain  a  great  quantity  of  it ;  3.  in  the  stems  of  several  monoco- 
tyledinous  plants,  especially  of  the  palm  tribe,  whence  sago  comes  ;  but 
it  is  very  rarely  found  in  the  stems  and  branches  of  the  dicotyledi- 
nous  plants ;  4.  it  occurs  in  many  species  of  lichen.    Three  kinds  of 


672 


STA. 


[appendix. 


starch  have  been  distinguished  by  chemists ;  that  of  wheat,  that  called 
inuline,  and  lichen  starch.  These  three  agree  in  being  insoluble  in  cold 
water,  alcohol,  ether,  and  oils,  and  in  being  converted  into  sugar  by  either 
dilute  sulphuric  acid  or  diastase.  The  main  difference  between  them 
consists  in  their  habitudes  with  water  and  iodine.  The  first  forms  with 
hot  water  a  mucilaginous  solution,  which  constitutes,  when  cold,  the 
paste  of  the  laundress,  and  is  tinged  blue  by  iodine  ;  the  second  forms  a 
granular  precipitate,  when  its  solution  in  boiling  hot  water  is  suffered  to 
cool,  which  is  tinged  yellow  by  iodine  ;  the  third  affords,  by  cooling 
the  concentrated  solution,  a  gelatinous  mass,  with  a  clear  liquor  floating 
over  it,  that  contains  little  starch.  Its  jelly  becomes  brown-gray  with 
iodine. 

1.  Ordinary  starch.  —  This  may  be  extracted  from  the  following 
grains  : — wheat,  rye,  barley,  oats,  buckwheat,  rice,  maize,  millet,  spelt ; 
from  the  siliquose  seeds,  as  peas,  beans,  lentiles,  &c. ;  from  tuberous  and 
tap  roots,  as  those  of  the  potato,  the  orchis,  manioc,  arrow-root,  batata, 
&c.  Different  kinds  of  corn  yield  very  variable  quantities  of  starch. 
Wheat  differs  in  this  respect,  according  to  the  varieties  of  the  plant,  as 
well  as  the  soil,  manure,  season,  and  climate.* 

2.  With  unground  wheat. — The  wheat  being  sifted  clean,  is  to  be  put 
into  cisterns,  covered  with  soft  water,  and  left  to  steep  till  it  becomes  swol- 
len and  so  soft  as  to  be  easily  crushed  between  the  fingers.  It  is  now  to 
be  taken  out,  and  immersed  in  clear  water  of  a  temperature  equal  to  that 
of  malting-barley,  whence  it  is  to  be  transferred  into  bags,  which  are 
placed  in  a  wooden  chest  containing  some  water,  and  exposed  to  strong 
pressure.  The  water  rendered  milky  by  the  starch  being  drawn  off  by 
a  tap,  fresh  water  is  poured  in,  and  the  pressure  is  repeated.  Instead  of 
putting  the  swollen  grain  into  bags,  some  prefer  to  grind  it  under  vertical 
edge-stones,  or  between  a  pair  of  horizontal  rollers,  and  then  to  lay  it  in 
a  cistern,  and  separate  the  starchy  liquor  by  elutriation  with  successive 
quantities  of  water  well  stirred  up  with  it.  The  residuary  matter  in  the 
sacks  or  cisterns  contains  much  vegetable  albumen  and  gluten,  along  with 
the  husks;  when  exposed  to  fermentation,  it  affords  a  small  quantity  of 
starch  of  rather  inferior  quality. 

The  above  milky  liquor,  obtained  by  expression  or  elutriation,  is  run 
into  large  cisterns,  where  it  deposites  its  starch  in  layers  successively  less 
and  less  dense ;  the  uppermost  containing  a  considerable  proportion  of 
gluten.  The  supernatant  liquor  being  drawn  off,  and  fresh  water  poured 
on  it,  the  whole  must  be  well  stirred  up,  allowed  again  to  settle,  and  the 
surface-liquor  again  withdrawn.    This  washing  should  be  repeated  as 


"  Wheat  partly  damaged  by  long  keeping  in  granaries,  may  be  employed  for  the  manufac- 
ture of  starch,  as  this  constituent  suffers  less  injury  than  the  gluten ;  and  it  may  be  used 
either  in  the  ground  or  unground  state. 


APPENDIX.] 


STA. 


673 


long  as  the  water  takes  any  perceptible  color.  As  the  first  turbid  liquor 
contains  a  mixture  of  gluten,  sugar,  gum,  albumen,  &c,  it  ferments 
readily,  and  produces  a  certain  portion  of  vinegar,  which  helps  to  dis- 
solve out  the  rest  of  the  mingled  gluten,  and  thus  to  bleach  the  starch. 
It  is,  in  fact,  by  the  action  of  this  fermented  or  soured  water,  and  re- 
peated washing,  that  it  is  purified.  After  the  last  deposition  and  decan- 
tation,  there  appears  on  the  surface  of  the  starch  a  thin  layer  of  a  slimy 
mixture  of  gluten  and  albumen,  which,  being  scraped  off,  serves  for  feed- 
ing pigs  or  oxen ;  underneath  will  be  found  a  starch  of  good  quality. 
The  layers  of  different  sorts  are  then  taken  up  with  a  wooden  shovel, 
transferred  into  separate  cisterns,  where  they  are  agitated  with  water, 
and  passed  through  fine  sieves.  After  this  pap  is  once  more  well  settled, 
the  clear  water  is  drawn  off,  the  starchy  mass  is  taken  out,  and  laid  on 
linen  cloths  in  wicker  baskets,  to  drain  and  become  partially  dry.  When 
sufficiently  firm,  it  is  cut  into  pieees,  which  are  spread  upon  other  cloths, 
and  thoroughly  desiccated  in  a  proper  drying  room,  which  in  winter  is 
heated  by  stoves.  The  upper  surface  of  the  starch  is  generally  scraped, 
to  remove  any  dusty  matter,  and  the  resulting  powder  is  sold  in  that 
state.  Wheat  yields,  upon  an  average,  only  from  35  to  40  per  cent,  of 
good  starch.    It  should  afford  more  by  skilful  management. 

M.  Leroy,  of  Brussels,  has  found  that  water  is  requisite  to  the  produc- 
tion of  the  blue  color  which  arises  from  the  action  of  iodine  on  starch  :  in 
alcohol  the  iodine  becomes  merely  of  a  dark  brown  color,  and  water 
causes  the  blue  color  to  appear.  M.  Chevalier  has  also  remarked  that 
farinaceous  substances  mixed/with  starch,  which  are  always  moist,  when 
subjected  to  the  vapor  of  iodide,  acquired  a  brown  (blue  ?)  color,  while 
potato  starch  became  of  a  golden  yellow  merely.  He  concluded,  from 
this  circumstance,  that  iodine  of  starch  is  of  a  yellow  color,  and  that  this 
by  absorbing  (and  combining  with)  water  became'  blue  hydrate ;  and  he 
found  that  when  this  yellow  compound  was  touched  with  a  moistened 
tube,  it  became  instantly  blue. 

M.  Lassaigne  remarks,  that  in  making  some  experiments  on  the  com- 
bination of  iodine  with  amidine  (starch  altered  by  heat),  which  is  easily 
obtained  by  gradually  pouring  an  alcoholic  solution  of  iodine  into  the  so- 
lution obtained  from  the  starch  extracted  cold  from  bruised  grain,  he 
found  its  fine  deep  indigo  blue  color  gradually  disappear  by  the  action  of 
heat,  and  at  a  temperature  of  about  175°  to  195°  of  Fahr.  it  entirely 
disappeared,  the  fluid  remaining  transparent.  It  was  at  first  supposed 
that  the  iodide  of  amidine  had  been"  decomposed  by  the  heat ;  but  this 
was  not  the  case,  for,  on  cooling,  the  blue  color  gradually  reappeared, 
and  eventually  became  as  dark  as  at  first.  This  experiment  of  the  al- 
ternate destruction  and  reproduction  of  color  may  be  several  times  re- 
peated, provided  the  heat  be  not  continued  longer  than  is  required  to  de- 
colorize the  liquor ;  and  a  few  minutes  boiling  beyond  this  point  destroys 


674 


SUL. 


[appendix. 


the  power  of  reproduction.  In  this,  however,  it  did  not  appear  that  the 
iodine  was  volatilized  by  the  vapor  of  water,  as  might  be  supposed ;  for 
it  is  found,  in  part,  in  the  decolorized  liquor  in  the  state  of  hydriodic 
acid,  mixed  with  a  portion  of  undecomposed  amidine ;  and  the  addition 
of  a  few  drops  of  a  weak  solution  of  chlorine  explains  why  the  blue  color 
is  reproduced  by  this  chemical  agent. 

STEATITE,  is  a  mineral  of  the  magnesian  family.  It  has  a  grayish- 
white  or  greenish-white  color,  often  marked  with  dendritic  delineations, 
and  occurs  massive,  as  also  in  various  supposititious  crystaline  forms ;  it 
has  a  dull  or  fatty  lustre ;  a  coarse  splintery  fracture,  with  translucent 
edges  ;  a  shining  streak  ;  it  writes  feebly  ;  is  soft,  and  easily  cut  with  a 
knife ;  but  somewhat  tough ;  does  not  adhere  to  the  tongue ;  feels  very 
greasy ;  infusible  before  the  blowpipe  ;  specific  gravity  from  2'6  to  2*8. 
It  consists  of — silica,  44  ;  magnesia,  44 ;  alumina,  2  ;  iron,  7-3  ;  manga- 
nese, 1-5  ;  chrome,  2  ;  with  a  trace  of  lime.  It  is  found  frequently  in 
small  contemporaneous  veins  that  traverse  serpentine  in  all  directions,  as 
at  Portsoy,  in  Shetland,  in  the  limestone  of  Icolmkiln,  in  the  serpentine 
of  Cornwall,  in  Anglesey,  in  Saxony,  Bavaria,  (at  Bayruth,)  Hungary, 
&c.  It  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  porcelain.  It  makes  the  biscuit 
semi-transparent,  but  rather  brittle,  and  apt  to  crack  with  slight  changes 
of  heat.  It  is  employed  for  polishing  serpentine,  marble,  gypseous  alabas- 
ter, and  mirror  glass  ;  as  the  basis  of  cosmetic  powders;  as  an  ingredient 
in  anti-attrition  pastes  ;  it  is  dusted  in  powder  upon  the  inside  of  boots, 
to  make  the  feet  glide  easily  into  them ;  when  rubbed  upon  grease-spots 
in  silk  and  woolen  cloths,  it  removes  the  stains  by  absorption  ;*  it  enters 
into  the  composition  of  certain  crayons,  and  is  used  itself  for  making 
traces  upon  glass,  silk,  &c.f 

SUBLIMATION,  is  the  process  by  which  the  volatile  particles  are 
raised  by  heat,  and  condensed  into  a  crystaline  mass.J  This  operation 
is  frequently  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of  purifying  various  chemical 
products,  and  separating  them  from  substances  which  are  less  volatile. 

SUBSALT,  is  a  salt  in  which  the  base  is  not  saturated  with  acid  ;  as 
subacetate  of  lead. 

SULPHATES,  are  saline  compounds  of  sulphuric  acid  with  oxidized 
bases.§  The  minutest  quantity  of  them  present  in  any  solution,  may  be  de- 
tected by  the  precipitate,  insoluble  in  nitric  or  muriatic  acid,  which  they  af- 
ford with  nitrate  or  muriate  of  baryta.  They  are  mostly  insoluble  in  alcohol. 

SULPHATE  OF  ALUMINA  AND  POTASSA,  is  alum. 


*  See  chapter  IV.,  Part  V. 

t  The  spotted  steatite,  cut  into  cameos  and  calcined,  assumes  an  onyx  aspect.  Soft  steatite 
forms  excellent  stoppers  for  the  chemical  apparatus  used  in  distilling  or  subliming  corrosive 
vapors.   Lamellar  steatite  is  Talc. 

%  For  an  example,  see  Sal  Ammoniac. 

$  Green  vitriol  is  a  sulphate  of  the  protoxide  of  Ixon.   Glauber's  salt  is  a  sulphate  of  soda. 


APPENDIX.] 


SUL. 


675 


SULPHATE  OF  AMMONIA,  is  a  salt  sometimes  formed  by  satu- 
rating the  ammonia  liquor  of  the  gas-works  with  sulphuric  acid ;  and  it 
is  employed  for  making  carbonate  of  ammonia. — (See  Ammonia  and  Sal 
Ammoniac.) 

SULPHATE  OF  COPPER,  or  Blue  Vitriol,  similar  to  the  artificial 
salt  of  the  laboratory.  The  blue  water  which  flows  from  certain  copper 
mines  is  a  solution  of  this  salt.  The  copper  is  easily  procured  in  the  me- 
tallic state  by  plunging  pieces  of  iron  into  it. 

SULPHATE  OF  IRON.— M.  Berthemot,  (I.  de  Phar.)  offers  the 
following  observations  on  "  preparing  the  sulphate  of  iron  so  as  to  pre- 
serve it  at  a  minimum  of  oxidation." — Having  dissolved  and  crystalized 
in  water  sharpened  with  sulphuric  acid,  a  portion  of  common  sulphate  of 
iron,  exempt  from  copper  and  zinc,  take  500  parts  of  it  and  dissolve  it  in 
550  parts  of  distilled  water  :  then  add  to  the  solution  8  parts  of  pure  iron 
turnings,  and  after  a  few  minutes  filter  it  boiling  hot,  taking  care  to  mois- 
ten the  filter  previously,  that  the  liquid  may  flow  through  it  more  rapidly. 
Put  the  solution  in  a  vessel  containing  375  parts  of  alcohol  at  33°  to  36°, 
and  8  parts  of  sulphuric  acid,  stirring  it  briskly  with  a  glass  rod  as  it  is 
poured  in.  The  sulphate  of  iron  immediately  precipitates  in  the  form  of 
a  bluish  white  crystaline  powder,  and  thus  prepared  it  will  remain  in  the 
air  without  the  least  alteration.  It  contains,  besides,  the  same  proportion 
of  water  of  crystalization  as  that  which  is  deposited  from  an  aqueous  so- 
lution. It  is  only  after  boiling  it  for  some  time  in  strong  alcohol  that  it 
gives  up  a  portion. — (See  chapters  I.  and  III.,  Part  III.) 

SULPHATE  OF  LEAD. — (See  Calico  Printing.) 

SULPHATE  OF  MAGNESIA,  Epsom  salt,  exists  in  sea-water, 
as  also  in  the  waters  of  Saidschutz,  Seidlitz  and  Piillna ;  and  in  many 
saline  springs,  besides  Epsom  in  Surrey,  whence  it  has  derived  its 
trivial  name,  and  from  which  it  was  first  extracted,  in  the  year  1695, 
and  continued  to  be  so,  till  modern  chemistry  pointed  out  cheaper  and 
more  abundant  sources  of  this  useful  purgative  salt.  The  sulphate  of 
magnesia,  occasionally  found  effloresced  on  the  surface  of  minerals  in 
crystaline  filaments,  was  called  haarsalz  (hair  salt)  by  the  older  writers. 
The  bittern  of  the  Scotch  sea-salt  works  is  muriate  of  magnesia,  mixed 
with  a  little  sulphate  of  magnesia  and  chloride  of  sodium.  If  the  proper 
decomposing  quantity  (found  by  trial)  of  sulphate  of  soda  be  added  to  it, 
and  the  mixed  solution  be  evaporated  at  the  temperature  of  122°  F., 
chloride  of  sodium  will  form  by  double  affinity,  and  fall  down  in  cubical 
crystals  ;  while  the  solution  of  sulphate  of  magnesia,  which  remains,  be- 
ing evaporated  to  the  proper  point,  will  afford  regular  crystals  in  four- 
sided  prisms  with  four-sided  acuminations.  Or,  if  bittern  be  treated  in  a 
retort  with  the  equivalent  quantity  of  sulphuric  acid,  the  muriatic  acid 
may  be  distilled  off  into  a  series  of  Woulfe's  bottles  and  the  sulphate  of 
magnesia,  soda,  and  lime,  will  remain  in  the  retort,  from  which  mixture 


676 


SUL. 


[appendix. 


the  sulphate  of  magnesia  may  be  separated  by  filtration  and  crystaliza- 
tion. 

Magnesian  limestone  being  digested,  with  as  much  muriatic  acid  as 
mil  dissolve  out  its  lime  only,  will,  after  washing,  afford,  with  the  equiv- 
alent quantity  of  sulphuric  acid,  a  pure  sulphate  of  magnesia ;  and  this 
is  certainly  the  simplest  and  most  profitable  process  for  manufacturing 
this  salt  upon  the  great  scale.  Many  prepare  it  directly,  by  digesting 
upon  magnesian  limestone  the  equivalent  saturating  quantity  of  dilute 
sulphuric  acid.  The  sulphate  of  lime  being  separated  by  subsidence, 
the  supernatant  solution  of  sulphate  of  magnesia  is  evaporated  and  crys- 
talized. 

This  salt  is  composed  of,  magnesia  16-72,  sulphuric  acid  32-39,  and  wa- 
ter 50-89.  When  free  from  muriate,  it  tends  to  effloresce  in  the  air.  It 
dissolves  in  4  parts  of  water  at  32°,  in  3  parts  at  60°,  in  1*4  at  200°, 
and  in  its  own  water  of  crystalization  at  a  higher  heat. 

SULPHATE  OF  MANGANESE  is  prepared  on  the  great  scale  for 
the  calico-printers,  by  exposing  the  peroxide  of  the  metal  and  pitcoal  ground 
together,  and  made  into  a  paste  with  sulphuric  acid,  to  a  heat  of  400°  F. 
On  lixiviating  the  calcined  mass,  a  solution  of  the  salt  is  obtained,  which  is 
to  be  evaporated  and  crystalized.  It  forms  pale  amethyst-colored  prisms, 
which  have  an  astringent  bitter  taste,  dissolve  in  2\  parts  of  water,  and 
consist  of,  protoxide  of  manganese  31-93,  sulphuric  acid  35-87,  and  wa- 
ter 32-20,  in  100  parts. 

SULPHATE  OF  MERCURY  is  a  white  salt  which  is  used  in  mak- 
ing corrosive  sublimate. — (See  Corrosive  Sublimate.) 

SULPHATE  OF  POTASH.— This  salt  may  readily  be  prepared  by 
decomposing  carbonate  of  potash  by  sulphuric  acid.  It  is  produced  on  a 
large  scale  in  the  manufacture  of  nitric  acid,  of  which  it  constitutes  the 
residue.  Its  taste  is  saline  and  bitter ;  it  crystalizes  in  six-sided  prisms, 
which  contain  no  water  of  crystalization,  and  suffer  no  change  by  exposure 
to  air.  It  is  not  very  soluble,  and  requires  sixteen  times  its  weight  of 
cold  water  and  five  of  boiling  water  for  its  solution.  It  decrepitates  at  a 
red  heat,  and  is  volatilized,  without  decomposition,  at  a  still  higher  tem- 
perature. If  hydrogen  gas  be  passed  over  it  at  a  red  heat  it  will  be  de- 
composed ;  the  oxygen  both  of  the  acid  and  base  will  be  abstracted,  and 
sulphuret  of  potassium  remain.  It  also  produces  sulphuret  of  potassium 
by  calcination,  at  a  high  heat,  with  one-fifth  of  its  weight  of  charcoal. 
When  two  parts  of  this  salt  and  one  of  lampblack  are  heated  to  redness 
in  a  phial  coated  with  clay,  and  the  air  carefully  excluded  during  the 
process,  a  powder  is  obtained  which  takes  fire  upon  exposure  to  the  air  ; 
a  phenomenon  owing  to  the  heat  evolved  by  the  rapid  absorption  of  oxy- 
gen and  the  consequent  ignition  of  the  sulphur  and  charcoal. 

SULPHATE  OF  SODA.— The  sulphate  of  soda  may  be  formed  by 
the  direct  combination  of  the  acid  and  base,  but  is  abundantly  produced 


APPENDIX.] 


SUL. 


677 


in  the  manufacture  of  muriatic  acid  by  the  decomposition  of  common 
salt.  It  crystalizes,  from  its  aqueous  solution,  in  four-sided  prisms, 
which  contain  ten  equivalents  of  water  of  crystalization.  Of  these  it 
parts  with  a  very  large  proportion  by  efflorescence  in  a  dry  atmosphere. 
Its  taste  is  saline  and  bitter,  and  it  has  been  long  known  in  medicine  by 
the  name  of  Glauber's  Salt.  It  is  very  soluble  in  water,  but  presents 
a  very  singular  irregularity  in  this  respect.  Its  solubility  increases  to  a 
certain  point,  and  then  diminishes.  It  increases  to  92°,  which  is  the 
maximum  point,  and  decreases  to  215°.  It  is  insoluble  in  alcohol.  It 
may  be  deprived  of  its  water  of  crystalization  by  heat,  and  then  resists 
further  decomposition.  The  taste  of  the  anhydrous  salt  is  acrid  and  hot, 
and  it  absorbs  moisture  with  great  avidity.  It  may  be  made,  consecu- 
tively, to  undergo  both  the  aqueous  and  igneous  fusion. 

A  bisulphate  of  soda  may  be  formed  by  a  similar  process  to  that  by 
which  the  analogous  salt  of  potash  is  produced. 

SULPHATE  OF  ZINC,  called  also  White  Vitriol,  is  commonly 
prepared  in  the  Hearz,  by  washing  the  calcined  and  effloresced  sulphuret 
of  zinc  or  blende,  on  the  same  principle  as  green  and  blue  vitriol  are  ob- 
tained from  the  sulphurets  of  iron  and  copper.  Pure  sulphate  of  zinc 
may  be  made  most  readily  by  dissolving  the  metal  in  dilute  sulphuric 
acid,  evaporating  and  crystalizing  the  solution.  It  forms  prismatic  crys- 
tals, which  have  an  astringent,  disagreeable,  metallic  taste ;  they  efflo- 
resce in  a  dry  air,  dissolve  in  2*3  parts  of  water  at  60°,  and  consist  of— 
oxide  of  zinc,  28-29;  acid,  28*18;  water,  43-53.  Sulphate  of  zinc  is 
used  for  preparing  drying  oils  for  varnishes,  and  in  the  reserve  or  resist 
pastes  of  the  calico-printer. 

SULPHITES  are  a  class  of  salts,  consisting  of  sulphurous  acid,  com- 
bined in  equivalent  proportions  with  the  oxidized  bases. 

SULPHUR. — Sulphur  is  one  of  the  few  elements  which  occur  in 
nature  in  their  simple  form.  It  is  a  well  known  mineral  substance,  found 
in  large  quantities  in  the  neighborhood  of  volcanoes ;  and,  as  an  article  of 
commerce,  is  chiefly  brought  from  the  Mediterranean.  It  is  commonly 
met  with  in  two  forms — that  of  a  compact,  brittle  solid  ;  and  that  of  a 
fine  powder.  It  is  of  a  light  yellow  color ;  and  when  melted  emits  a 
peculiar  odor.  It  is  insoluble  in  water,  and  tasteless.  It  is  about  double 
the  weight  of  water,  its  specific  gravity  being  1-98.  It  is  readily  melted 
and  volatilized,  and  begins  to  evaporate  at  170°,  and  to  fuse  at  105°.  At 
220°  it  becomes  completely  fluid ;  but  possesses  the  peculiar  property  of 
solidifying  at  a  higher  degree,  or  at  350°,  and  of  again  melting  by  a  re- 
duction of  temperature.  It  sublimes  (this  term  is  used  to  denote  the 
evaporation  of  a  solid)  at  600°  ;  and  condenses  into  the  form  of  a  powder, 
or,  as  it  is  termed,  of  flowers.  When  poured  into  water,  in  the  state  of 
complete  fusion,  it  becomes  of  the  consistency  of  wax,  and  assumes  a  red 


678 


TAR. 


APPENDIX. 


color ;  it  may  then  be  used  for  taking  impressions  from  engraved  stones, 
and  hardens  upon  cooling. 

Sulphur  is  completely  soluble  in  boiling  oil  of  turpentine,  and  in  alcohol, 
when  the  two  substances  are  brought  in  contact  in  the  state  of  vapor.  It 
is  inflammable  ;  that  is  to  say,  it  combines,  when  ignited,  with  the  oxygen 
of  the  atmosphere,  with  the  evolution  of  light  and  heat.  It  burns  with  a 
faint  blue  light,  at  the  temperature  of  about  180°  or  190°  ;  and  the  evo- 
lution of  heat  is  so  small,  that  it  may  be  burned  out  of  gunpowder,  of 
which  it  is  one  of  the  principal  ingredients,  without  inflaming  it.  At  a 
temperature  of  300°,  however,  its  combustion  is  more  rapid.  It  is  not 
affected  by  air  or  water. 

SULPHURATION,  is  the  process  by  which  woolen,  silk,  and  cotton 
goods  are  exposed  to  the  vapors  of  burning  sulphur,  or  to  sulphurous  acid 
gas. — (See  chapter  IV.,  Part  II.) 

T. 

TANNIN,  artificial. — By  digesting  powdered  charcoal  in  nitric  acid, 
and  carefully  evaporating  the  solution  so  obtained,  Mr.  Hatchett  suc- 
ceeded in  procuring  a  brown  substance  of  an  astringent  taste,  and  pre- 
cipitating solution  of  gelatine,  which  he  therefore  terms  artificial  tan. — 
(See  Tannin  and  Gallic  Acid,  chapter  II.,  Part  III.) 

TARTAR,  called  also  argal  or  argol,  is  the  crude  bitartrate  of  potassa, 
which  exists  in  the  juice  of  the-  grape,  and  is  deposited  from  wines  in  their 
fermenting  casks,  being  precipitated  in  proportion  as  the  alcohol  is  form- 
ed, in  consequence  of  its  insolubility  in  that  liquid.  There  are  two  sorts 
of  argal  known  in  commerce,  the  white,  and  the  red  ;  the  former,  which 
is  of  a  pale-pinkish  color,  is  the  crust  let  fall  by  white  wines ;  the  latter 
isva  dark-red,  from  red  wines. 

The  crude  tartar  is  purified,  or  converted  into  cream  of  tartar,  at  Mont- 
pellier,  by  the  following  process  : — 

The  argal  having  been  ground  under  vertical  mill-stones,  and  sifted,  one  part  of  it  is  boiled 
with  15  of  water  in  conical  copper  kettles,  tinned  on  the  inside.  As  soon  as  it  is  dissolved, 
3%  parts  of  ground  pipe-clay  are  introduced.  The  solution  being  well  stirred,  and  then  set- 
tled, is  drawn  off  into  crystalizing  vessels  to  cool ;  the  crystals  found  concreted  on  the  sides, 
and  bottom  are  picked  out,  washed  with  water  and  dried.  The  mother  water  is  employed 
upon  a  fresh  portion  of  argal.  The  crystals  of  the  first  crop  are  re-dissolved,  re-crystalized, 
and  exposed  upon  stretched  canvass  to  the  sun  and  air,  to  be  bleached.  The  clay  serves  tc 
abstract  the  coloring  matter.  The  crystals  formed  upon  the  surface  are  the  whitest,  whence 
the  name  cream  of  tartar  is  derived. 

Purified  tartar,  the  bitartrate  of  potassa,  is  thus  obtained  in  hard  clus- 
ters of  small  colorless  crystals,  which,  examined  by  a  lens,  are  seen  to  be 
transparent  4-sided  prisms.  It  has  no  smell,  but  a  feebly  acid  taste ;  is 
unchangeable  in  the  air,  has  a  specific  gravity  of  1*953,  dissolves  in  16 


APPENDIX.] 


TIN. 


679 


parts  of  boiling  water,  and  in  200  parts  at  60°  F.  It  is  insoluble  in  alco- 
hol. It  consists  of  24-956  potassa,  70-276  tartaric  acid,  and  4-768  water. 
It  affords,  by  dry  distillation,  pyrotartaric  acid,  and  an  empyreumatic 
oil ;  while  carbonate  of  potassia  remains  associated  with  much  charcoal 
in  the  retort,  constituting  a  black  flux.  Tartar  is  extensively,  as  has  been 
shown,  used  in  dyeing. 

TARTRATE  OF  POTASH.— Tartrate  of  potash  is  a  salt  which 
crystalizes  in  large  transparent  four-sided  right  prisms  with  rectangular 
bases.  They  contain  two  atoms  of  water  of  crystalization,  but  are  easily 
rendered  anhydrous  by  heat.  A  quantity  of  these  crystals  was  left  upon 
the  sand  bath  for  twenty-four  hours  in  a  covered  glass  capsule,  in  a  heat 
amounting  for  several  hours  to  about  240° ;  14-25  grains  of  the  salt,  thus 
rendered  anhydrous,  were  dissolved  in  distilled  water;  20-75  grains  of 
dry  nitrate  of  lead  were  dissolved  in  another  portion  of  distilled  water, 
and  the  two  liquids  were  mixed  together :  a  double  decomposition  took 
place,  and  the  tartrate  of  lead  precipitated  with  such  rapidity  that  in  about 
an  hour  it  left  the  mother  water  quite  transparent  and  colorless.  This 
mother  water  was  tested  with  nitrate  of  lead  and  tartrate  of  potash, 
without  being  in  the  least  affected  by  either.  Hence,  it  contained  no 
sensible  quantity  either  of  tartaric  acid  or  of  lead.  The  whole  of  these 
two  bodies  was  contained  in  the  precipitate  which  had  fallen. 

THERMOMETER,  Fahrenheit's— In  this  thermometer  the  freezing 
point  of  water  is  placed  at  32°,  and  the  boiling  point  at  212°. 

In  Reamufs  thermometer  the  freezing  point  is  at  zero,  and  the  boiling 
point  at  80°.  From  this  it  is  evident  that  180  degrees  of  Fahrenheit  are 
equal  to  80°  of  Reamur ;  or  1  degree  of  Fahrenheit  is  equal  to  £ths  of  a 
degree  of  Reamur.  It  is  easy,  therefore,  to  convert  the  degrees  of  one 
into  the  equivalent  numbers  of  the  other ;  but  upon  ascertaining  the  cor- 
responding point  upon  the  different  scales,  it  is  necessary  to  take  into 
consideration  their  different  modes  of  graduation.  Thus,  as  the  zero  of 
Fahrenheit  is  32°  below  the  point  at  which  that  of  Reamur  is  placed,  this 
number  must  be  taken  into  the  calculation.  If,  for  example,  any  degree 
of  Reamur  above  or  below  zero  be  multiplied  by  9  and  divided  by  4,  the 
quotient  will  be  the  number  of  degrees  above  or  below  32°  or  the  freez- 
ing point  of  Fahrenheit.* — (See  Areometer  ;  also  Ebullition.) 

TIN  MORDANTS. — "  Several  preparations  of  tin  are  employed  as 
mordants  in  dyeing  and  calico-printing,  comprising  salts  of  the  protoxide 
and  of  the  peroxide,  and  mixtures  of  the  salts  of  both  oxides.  The  oxides 
of  tin  have  a  strong  tendency  to  unite  with  soluble  vegetable  and  animal 
coloring  matters,  producing  distinct  and  definite  combinations;  and  the 
compounds  with  the  peroxide  are  generally  distinguished  for  possessing  a 


*  "United  States  Dispensatory,"  p.  1326.   Philadelphia:  Grigg  &  Elliot.  1843. 

* 


680 


TIN. 


[appendix. 


vivacity  of  teint  far  superior  to  that  presented  by  the  combinations  of  the 
same  coloring  matter  with  any  other  mordant. 

"  Peroxide  of  tin  is  used  as  a  mordant  chiefly  with  cochineal,  Brazil- 
wood, peachwood,  barwood,  French  berries,  and  logwood,  and  is  com- 
monly applied  in  a  state  of  a  solution  of  the  perchloride  (permuriate), 
or  as  a  mixture  of  the  solution  of  the  perchloride  with  that  of  the 
pernitrate.  Such  solutions,  which  are  known  among  dyers  by  the  name 
of  red  spirits  or  simply  spirits,  may  be  obtained  by  dissolving  metallic 
tin,  in  a  granulated  or  "  feathered"  state,  in  one  of  the  following  liquids  : — 

1.  Aqua  regia,  which  is  a  mixture  of  nitric  and  muriatic  acids; 

2.  A  mixtnre  of  nitric  acid  and  muriate  of  ammonia;  and 

3.  A  mixture  of  nitric  acid,  muriate  of  ammonia,  and  common  salt. 

"  The  perchloride  of  tin,  or  a  mixture  of  the  perchloride  and  pernitrate, 
is  also  sometimes  prepared  from  crystals  of  the  protochloride  (salts  of  tin) 
by  means  of  nitric  acid  or  aqua  regia.  The  nitric  acid  used  for  this  pur- 
pose should  be  quite  free  from  sulphuric  acid. 

"  A  great  number  of  receipts  for  the  preparation  of  this  mordant  have 
been  prescribed,  varying  very  considerably  in  the  proportions  of  the 
materials,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  fabric  to  be  dyed,  and  that  of 
the  dye-stuff  for  which  it  is  to  be  used  as  the  mordant.  Some  of  the 
preparations  contain  the  peroxide  or  perchloride  only ;  but  others,  which 
are  preferred  for  general  use,  contain  both  the  perchloride  and  the  proto- 
chloride. A  common  process  for  preparing  a  mixture  of  the  two  chlorides 
is  to  add  granulated  tin  very  gradually  to  a  mixture  of  three  parts  by 
measure  of  muriatic  acid,  and  one  part  of  commercial  nitric  acid,  so  long 
as  any  tin  is  dissolved  in  the  cold.  If  the  tin  is  not  added  gradually,  in- 
stead of  being  dissolved,  it  is  converted  into  the  insoluble  peroxide,  which 
is  deposited  as  a  white  powder. 

"  The  above  proportions  answer  well  for  a  mordant  for  general  use, 
and  especially  for  Brazil-wood  ;  but  for  particular  purposes  the  propor- 
tions of  muriatic  and  nitric  acids  are  varied  from  six  parts  of  the  former, 
and  one  of  the  latter,  to  equal  parts. 

"The  solution  of  the  perchloride  of  tin,  or  mixed  perchloride  and 
protochloride  made  by  dissolving  tin  in  a  mixture  of  nitric  acid  and  sal- 
ammoniac,  is  much  used  by  silk  and  woolen  dyers,  but  a  considerable 
difference  exists  between  the  proportions  of  the  materials  as  recommend- 
ed by  different  dyers.  For  general  purposes,  the  solution  afforded  by 
the  following  proportions  receives  a  decided  preference  : — 

3  quarts  of  nitric  acid  of  specific  gravity  1*300, 

4  quarts  of  water, 

12  ounces  of  muriate  of  ammonia, 
30  ounces  of  granulated  tin. 

44  The  muriate  of  ammonia  is  first  dissolved  in  the  mixture  of  acid  and 


APPENDIX.] 


TIN. 


681 


water,  and  to  this  solution  the  tin  is  added  in  small  quantities  at  a  time, 
so  as  to  prevent  the  mixture  from  becoming  very  hot. 

"  The  salt  met  with  in  commerce  under  the  name  of  pink  salt  is  the 
double  perchloride  of  tin  and  muriate  of  ammonia  (chloride  of  tin  and 
ammonium),  which  is  made  by  adding  muriate  of  ammonia  to  a  solution 
of  the  perchloride,  and  evaporating  to  obtain  crystals.  It  is  chiefly  used 
as  a  mordant  with  peach-wood. 

"  Peroxide  of  tin  is  often  applied  to  cloth  in  the  state  of  the  soluble  com- 
bination of  caustic  potash  and  oxide  of  tin,  known  as  stannate  of  potash, 
which  may  be  obtained  by  adding  a  solution  of  caustic  potash  to  a  solu- 
tion of  perchloride  of  tin,  until  the  precipitate  at  first  produced  is  entirely 
redissolved.  If  a  piece  of  cotton  impregnated  with  such  a  solution  is 
dipped  into  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  or  a  solution  of  muriate  of  ammonia, 
the  alkaline  combination  on  the  cloth  is  decomposed,  and  peroxide  of  tin 
precipitated  within  the  fibre.  The  decomposition  which  ensues  on  mix- 
ing stannate  of  potash  with  muriate  of  ammonia  is  quite  analogous  to  that 
which  occurs  on  the  mixture  of  aluminate  of  potash  with  muriate  of 
ammonia. 

"  Protoxide  of  tin  is  frequently  used  as  a  mordant  alone,  as  well  as 
the  peroxide.  This  oxide  may  be  applied  from  the  protochloride  of  tin. 
which  is  prepared  by  dissolving  metallic  tin  in  pure  muriatic  acid  to 
saturation,  with  the  assistance  of  heat.  One  part  of  tin  may  be  dis 
solved  in  about  three  parts  of  concentrated  muriatic  acid,  and  on  evapo 
ration  the  solution  affords  small  colorless  crystals,  distinguished  as  salts  of 
tin.  The  solution  of  the  protochloride  is  known  among  dyers  by  the 
name  of  plum  spirits,  being  used  in  the  preparation  of  the  plum  tub, 
which  is  a  mixture  of  decoction  of  logwood  with  the  protochloride. 

"  This  salt  has  several  interesting  applications  in  calico-printing,  both 
as  a  mordant  and  a  deoxidizing  agent.  The  solution  of  protoxide  of  tin 
in  a  caustic  alkali,  obtained  by  adding  the  alkali  to  the  solution  of  proto- 
chloride of  tin  until  the  protoxide  at  first  precipitated  is  redissolved,  is 
frequently  used  in  the  place  of  the  protochloride. 

"  When  exposed  to  the  air,  a  solution  of  protochloride  of  tin  absorbs? 
oxygen,  and  affords,  if  not  very  acid,  a  white  precipitate  consisting  of 
a  subsalt  of  the  peroxide.  This  inconvenience  may  be  counteracted  to  & 
great  extent  by  the  addition  of  muriate  of  ammonia,  which  combines  with 
the  protochloride  to  form  a  double  salt,  less  disposed  to  absorb  oxygen 
than  the  pure  protochloride. 

"  The  colors  of  the  compounds  of  coloring  matters  with  peroxide  of  tin 
are  generally  much  brighter  than  those  of  the  same  compounds  with 
protoxide  of  tin,  but  solutions  of  the  protoxide  enter  the  pores  of  cotton 
fabrics  better  than  solutions  of  the  peroxide.  On  this  account,  a  prac- 
tice sometimes  pursued  in  dyeing  cotton  goods  by  a  tin  mordant,  is  first  to 
apply  the  tin  in  the  state  of  protochloride,  and  to  form  the  peroxide  af- 


682 


ULT. 


[appendix. 


terward,  within  the  fibre,  by  wincing  the  goods  in  a  dilute  solution  of 
chloride  of  lime."* — (See  chapter  I.,  Part  III.,  article  Tin,  and  chapter 
I.,  Part  VI.) 

TROY  WEIGHT. — An  English  weight  chiefly  used  in  weighing 
gold,  silver,  diamonds,  and  other  articles  of  jewelry.  The  pound  troy 
contains  12  ounces  or  5760  grains,  the  pound  avoirdupois  containing  7000 
of  such  grains.  The  name  is  supposed  to  have  reference  to  the  monkish 
name  given  to  London,  of  Troy  Novant. — (See  Weight.) 

TURPENTINE,  OIL  OF. — (See  Oil  of  Turpentine.) 

u. 

ULTRAMARINE,  is  a  beautiful  blue  pigment  obtained  from  the  va- 
riegated blue  mineral,  called  lazulite  (lapis  lazuli),  by  the  following  pro- 
cess : — 

Grind  the  stone  to  fragments,  rejecting  all  the  colorless  bits,  calcine  at  a  red  heat,  quench 
in  water,  and  then  grind  to  an  impalpable  powder  along  with  water,  in  a  paint-mill,  or  with 
a  porphyry  slab  and  muller.  The  paste,  being  dried,  is  to  be  rubbed  to  powder,  and  passed 
through  a  silk  sieve.  100  parts  of  it  are  to  be  mixed  with  40  of  rosin,  20  of  white  wax,  25 
of  linseed  oil,  and  15  of  Burgundy  pitch,  previously  melted  together.  This  resinous  com- 
pound is  to  be  poured  hot  into  cold  water  ;  kneaded  well  first  with  two  spatulas,  then  with 
the  hands,  and  then  formed  into  one  or  more  small  rolls. 

MM.  Clement  and  Desormes,  who  were  the  first  to  divine  the  true 
nature  of  this  pigment,  think  that  the  soda  contained  in  the  lazulite, 
uniting  with  the  oil  and  the  rosin,  forms  a  species  of  soap,  which  serves  to 
wash  out  the  coloring  matter.  If  it  should  not  separate  readily,  water 
heated  to  about  150°  F.  should  be  had  recourse  to.  When  the  water  is 
sufficiently  charged  with  blue  color,  it  is  poured  off  and  replaced  by  fresh 
water;  and  the  kneading  and  change  of  water  are  repeated  till  the 
whole  of  the  color  is  extracted.  Others  knead  the  mixed  resinous  mass 
under  a  slender  stream  of  water,  which  runs  off  with  the  color  into  a 
large  earthen  pan.  The  first  waters  afford,  by  rest,  a  deposite  of  the 
finest  ultramarine ;  the  second,  a  somewhat  inferior  article,  and  so  on. 
Each  must  be  washed  afterwards  with  several  more  waters,  before  they 
acquire  the  highest  quality  of  tone ;  then  dried  separately,  and  freed  from 
any  adhering  particles  of  the  pitchy  compound  by  digestion  in  alcohol. 
The  remainder  of  the  mass  being  melted  with  oil,  and  kneaded  in  water 
containing  a  little  soda  or  potash,  yields  an  inferior  pigment,  called  ultra- 
marine ashes.  The  best  uttramarine  is  a  splendid  blue  pigment,  which 
works  well  with  oil,  and  is  not  liable  to  change  by  time.  Its  price  in 
Italy  was  twenty-five  dollars  the  ounce,  a  few  years  ago,  but  it  is  now 
greatly  reduced. 


*  Applied  Chemistry,  p.  116. 


APPENDIX.] 


VER. 


683 


The  blue  color  of  lazulile  had  been  always  ascribed  to  iron,  till  MM. 
Clement  and  Desormes,  by  a  most  careful  analysis,  showed  it  to  consist 
of— silica,  34  ;  alumina,  33;  sulphur,  3;  soda,  22;  and  that  the  iron,  car- 
bonate of  lime,  &c,  were  accidental  ingredients,  essential  neither  to  the 
mineral,  nor  to  the  pigment  made  from  it.  By  another  analyst,  the  con- 
stituents are  said  to  be — silica,  44  ;  alumina  35 ;  and  soda,  21 ;  and  by  a 
third,  potassa  was  found  instead  of  soda,  showing  shades  of  difference  in 
the  composition  of  the  stone. 

Till  a  few  years  ago,  every  attempt  failed  to  make  ultramarine  arti- 
ficially. At  length,  in  1828,  M.  Guimet  resolved  the  problem,  guided  by 
the  analysis  of  MM.  Clement  and  Desormes,  and  by  an  observation  of  M. 
Tassaert,  that  a  blue  substance  like  ultramarine  was  occasionally  produced 
on  the  sandstone  hearths  of  his  reverberatory  soda  furnaces.  "  Of  M.  Gui- 
met's  finest  pigment  I  received,"  says  "Dr.  Ure,  "  a  bottle  several  years 
ago,  from  my  friend  M.  Merimee,  Secretary  of  the  Ecole  de  Beaux  Arts, 
which  has  been  found  by  artists  little,  if  any,  inferior  to  the  lazulite  ultra- 
marine." M.  Guimet  sells  it  at  sixty  francs  per  pound  French, — which  is 
little  more  than  two  guineas  the  English  pound.  He  has  kept  his  pro- 
cess secret.  But  M.  Gmelin,  of  Tubingen,  has  published  a  prescription 
for  making  it ;  which  consists  in  enclosing  carefully  in  a  Hessian  crucible 
a  mixture  of  two  parts  of  sulphur,  and  one  of  dry  carbonate  of  soda, 
heating  them  gradually  to  redness  till  the  mass  fuses,  and  then  sprink- 
ling into  it  by  degrees  another  mixture,  of  silicate  of  soda,  and  aluminate 
of  soda  ;  the  first  containing  seventy-two  parts  of  silica,  and  the  second 
seventy  parts  of  alumina.  The  crucible  must  be  exposed  after  this  for  an 
hour  to  the  fire.  The  ultramarine  will  be  formed  by  this  time  ;  only  it 
contains  a  little  sulphur,  which  can  be  separated  by  means  of  water.  M. 
Persoz,  professor  of  chemistry  at  Strasburg,  has  likewise  succeeded  in 
making  an  ultramarine,  of  perhaps  still  better  quality  than  that  of 
M.  Guimet.  Lastly,  M.  Robiquet  has  announced,  that  it  is  easy  to  form 
ultramarine,  by  heating  to  redness  a  proper  mixture  of  kaolin  (China 
clay),  sulphur,  and  carbonate  of  soda.  It  would  therefore  appear,  from 
the  preceding  details,  that  ultramarine  may  be  regarded  as  a  compound 
of  silicate  of  alumina,  silicate  of  soda,  with  sulphuret  of  sodium ;  and  that 
to  the  reaction  of  the  last  constituent  upon  the  former  two,  it  owes  its 
color. — (See  Lazulite.) 

V. 

VAPOR,  is  the  state  of  elastic  or  aeriform  fluidity  into  which  any 
substance,  naturally  solid  or  liquid  at  ordinary  temperatures,  may  be 
converted  by  the  agency  of  heat. 

VERDIGRIS  is  a  mixture  of  the  crystalized  acetate  of  copper  and 


684 


VER. 


[appendix. 


the  subacetate,  in  varying  proportions.  According  to  Vauquelin's  re- 
searches, there  are  three  compounds  of  oxide  of  copper  and  acetic  acid  ; 
1.  a  subacetate,  insoluble  in  water,  but  decomposing  in  that  fluid,  at  com- 
mon temperatures  changing  into  peroxide  and  acetate ;  2.  a  neutral  ace- 
tate, the  solution  of  which  is  not  altered  at  common  temperatures,  but  is 
decomposed  by  ebullition,  becoming  peroxide  and  superacetate ;  and,  3. 
superacetate,  which  in  solution  is  not  decomposed,  either  at  J  common 
temperatures  or  at  the  boiling  point ;  and  which  cannot  be  obtained  in 
crystals,  except  by  slow  spontaneous  evaporation,  in  air  or  in  vacuo. 
The  first  salt,  in  the  dry  state,  contains  66-51  of  oxide  ;  the  second,  44-44  ; 
and  the  third,  33-34. 

Mr.  Phillips  has  given  the  following  analysis  of  French  and  English 
verdigris;  Annals  of  Philosophy,  No.  21. — 

French  Verdigris.  English  Verdigris . 
Acetic  acid   -      -   29  3  29  62 

Peroxide  of  copper  43*5  44*25 
Water  -  -  -  252  2551 
Impurity      -      -     20  062 

1000  100-00 


Distilled  verdigris,  as  it  was  long  erroneously  called,  is  merely  a 
binacetate  or  superacetate  of  copper,  made  by  dissolving,  in  a  copper 
kettle,  one  part  of  verdigris  in  two  of  distilled  vinegar,  aiding  the  mutual 
action  by  slight  heat  and  agitation  with  a  wooden  spatula.  When  the 
liquor  has  taken  its  utmost  depth  of  color,  it  is  allowed  to  settle,  and  the 
clear  portion  is  decanted  off  into  well-glazed  earthen  vessels.  Fresh 
vinegar  is  poured  on  the  residuum,  and  if  its  color  does  not  become  deep 
enough,  more  verdigris  is  added.  The  clear  and  saturated  solution  is 
then  slowly  evaporated,  in  a  vessel  kept  uniformly  filled,  till  it  acquires 
the  consistence  of  sirup,  and  shows  a  pellicle  on  its  surface ;  when  it  is 
transferred  into  glazed  earthen  pans,  called  oulas  in  the  country.  In  each 
of  these  dishes,  two  or  three  sticks  are  placed,  about  a  foot  long,  cleft  till 
within  two  inches  of  their  upper  end,  and  having  the  base  of  the  cleft 
kept  asunder  by  a  bit  of  wood.  This  kind  of  pyramid  is  suspended  by 
its  summit  in  the  liquid.  All  these  vessels  are  transported  into  crystal- 
izing  rooms,  moderately  heated  with  a  stove,  and  left  in  the  same  state 
for  ]5  days,  taking  care  to  maintain  a  uniform  temperature.  Thus  are 
obtained  very  fine  groups  of  crystals  of  acetate  of  copper,  clustered  round 
the  wooden  rods ;  on  which  they  are  dried,  taken  off,  and  sent  into  the 
market.  They  are  distinctly  rhomboidal  in  form,  and  of  a  lively  deep 
blue  color.  Each  cluster  of  crystals  weighs  from  five  to  six  pounds ;  and, 
in  general  their  total  weight  is  equal  to  about  one  third  of  the  verdigris 
employed. 

The  crystalized  binacetate  of  commerce  consists,  by  Dr.  Ure's  anal- 


APPENDIX.] 


VER. 


685 


ysis,  of  acetic  acid,  52 ;  oxide  of  copper,  39*6 ;  water,  8*4,  in  100.  He 
says  that  lie  prepared  crystals  which  contained  no  water.  There  is  a 
triple  acetate  of  copper  and  lime,  which  resembles  distilled  verdigris  in 
color.  It  was  manufactured  pretty  extensively  in  Scotland  some  years 
ago,  and  brought  a  high  price,  till  an  analysis  of  it  was  published  in  the 
Edinburgh  Philosophical  Journal.  It  is  much  inferior,  for  all  uses  in  the 
arts,  to  the  proper  bin  acetate. 

The  copper  used  in  this  manufacture  is  formed  into  round  sheets,  from 
20  to  25  inches  in  diameter,  by  one  twenty-fourth  of  an  inch  in  thickness. 
Each  sheet  is  then  divided  into  oblong  squares,  from  4  to  6  inches  in 
length,  by  3  broad ;  and  weighing  about  4  ounces.  They  are  separately 
beaten  upon  an  anvil,  to  smoothe  their  surfaces,  to  consolidate  the  metal, 
and  to  free  it  from  scales.  The  refuse  of  the  grapes,  after  the  extraction 
of  their  juice,  formerly  thrown  on  the  dunghill,  is  now  preserved  for  the 
purpose  of  making  verdigris.  It  is  put  loosely  into  earthen  vessels,  which 
are  usually  16  inches  high,  14  in  diameter  at  the  widest  part,  and  about 
12  at  the  mouth.  The  vessels  are  then  covered  with  lids,  which  are  sur- 
rounded with  straw  mats.  In  this  situation  the  materials  soon  become 
heated,  and  exhale  an  acid  odor ;  the  fermentation  beginning  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  cask,  and  gradually  rising  till  it  actuate  the  whole  mass.  At 
the  end  of  two  or  three  days,  the  manufacturer  removes  the  fermenting 
materials  into  other  vessels,  in  order  to  check  the  process,  lest  putrefac- 
tion should  ensue.  The  copper  plates,  if  new,  are  now  prepared,  by 
rubbing  them  over  with  a  linen  cloth  dipped  in  a  solution  of  verdigris ; 
and  they  are  laid  up  alongside  of  one  another  to  dry.  If  the  plates  are 
not  subjected  to  this  kind  of  preparation,  they  will  become  black,  instead 
of  green,  by  the  first  operation.  When  the  plates  are  ready,  and  the 
materials  in  a  fermenting  state,  one  of  them  is  put  into  the  earthen  vessel 
for  24  hours,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  it  be  a  proper  period  to  pro- 
ceed to  the  remaining  part  of  the  process.  If,  at  the  end  of  this  period, 
the  plate  be  covered  with  a  uniform  green  layer,  concealing  the  whole 
copper,  everything  is  right ;  but  if,  on  the  contrary,  liquid  drops  hang  on 
the  surface  of  the  metal,  the  workmen  say  the  plates  are  sweating,  and 
conclude  that  the  heat  of  the  fermented  mass  has  been  inadequate ;  on 
which  account  another  day  is  allowed  to  pass  before  making  a  similar 
trial.  When  the  materials  are  finally  found  to  be  ready,  the  strata  are 
formed  in  the  following  manner.  The  plates  are  laid  on  a  horizontal 
v/ooden  grating,  fixed  in  the  middle  of  a  vat,  on  whose  bottom  a  pan  full 
of  burning  charcoal  is  placed,  which  heats  them  to  such  a  degree,  that  the 
women  who  manage  this  work  are  obliged  to  lay  hold  of  them  frequently 
with  a  cloth  when  they  lift  them  out.  They  are  in  this  state  put  into 
earthen  vessels,  in  alternate  strata  with  the  fermented  materials,  the  up- 
permost and  undermost  layers  being  composed  of  the  expressed  grapes. 


686 


VER. 


[appendix. 


The  vessels  are  covered  with  their  straw  mats,  and  left  at  rest.  From 
30  to  40  pounds  of  copper  are  put  into  one  vessel. 

At  the  end  of  10,  12,  15,  or  20  days,  the  vessels  are  opened,  to  ascer- 
tain, by  the  materials  having  become  white,  if  the  operation  be  com- 
pleted. 

Detached  glossy  crystals  will  be  perceived  on  the  surface  of  the  plates ; 
in  which  case  the  grapes  are  thrown  away,  and  the  plates  are  pla  ed  up- 
right in  a  corner  of  the  verdigris  cellar,  one  against  the  other,  upon 
pieces  of  wood  laid  on  the  ground.  At  the  end  of  two  or  three  days  they 
are  moistened  by  dipping  in  a  vessel  of  water,  after  which  they  are  re- 
placed in  their  former  situation,  where  they  remain  seven  or  eight  days, 
and  are  then  subjected  to  momentary  immersion,  as  before.  This  alter- 
nate moistening  and  exposure  to  air  is  performed  six  or  eight  times,  at  re- 
gular intervals  of  about  a  week.  As  these  plates  are  sometimes  dipped 
into  damaged  wine,  the  workmen  term  these  immersions,  one  wine,  two 
wines,  &c. 

By  this  treatment,  the  plates  swell,  become  green,  and  covered  with  a 
stratum  of  verdigris,  which  is  readily  scraped  off  with  a  knife.  At 
each  operation  every  vessel  yields  from  five  to  six  pounds  of  verdigris,  in 
afresh  o$  humid  state  ;  which  is  sold  to  wholesale  dealers,  who  dry  it  for 
exportation.  For  this  purpose,  they  knead  the  paste  in  wooden  troughs, 
and  then  transfer  it  to  leathern  bags,  a  foot  and  a  half  long,  and  ten 
inches  in  diameter.  These  bags  are  exposed  to  the  sun  and  air,  till  the 
verdigris  has  attained  a  sufficient  degree  of  hardness.  It  loses  about 
half  its  weight  in  this  operation ;  and  it  is  said  to  be  knife-proof,  when 
this  instrument,  plunged  through  the  leathern  bag,  cannot  penetrate  the 
loaf  of  verdigris. 

VERMILION,  or  Cinnabar,  is  a  compound  of  mercury  and  sulphur, 
in  the  proportion  of  100  parts  of  the  former  to  16  of  the  latter,  which  oc- 
curs in  nature  as  a  common  ore  of  quicksilver,  and  is  prepared  by  the 
chemist  as  a  pigment,  under  the  name  of  Vermilion.  It  is,  properly 
speaking,  a  bisulphuret  of  mercury.  This  artificial  compound  being  ex- 
tensively employed,  on  account  of  the  beauty  of  its  color,  in  painting,  for 
making  red  sealing-wax,  and  other  purposes,  is  the  object  of  an  important 
manufacture.  When  vermilion  is  prepared  by  means  of  sublimation,  it 
concretes  in  masses  of  considerable  thickness,  concave  on  one  side,  con- 
vex on  the  other,  of  a  needle-form  texture  ;  brownish-red  in  the  lump, 
but  when  reduced  to  powder,  of  a  lively  red  color.  On  exposure  to  a 
moderate  heat,  it  evaporates  without  leaving  a  residuum,  if  it  be  not 
contaminated  with  red  lead ;  and  at  a  higher  heat  it  takes  fire,  and  burns 
entirely  away,  with  a  blue  flame. — (See  Cinnabar.) 


APPENDIX.] 


WEI. 


w. 


687 


WATER  OF  CRYSTALIZATION. — Some  crystalized  salts  con- 
tain more  or  less  water,  which,  as  it  bears  a  definite  proportion  to  the 
other  components  of  the  salt,  may  be  considered  as  one  of  its  essential 
constituents.  Crystalized  sulphate  of  lime,  for  instance,  is  a  compound 
of  68  of  dry  sulphate  and  18  water,  or  of  1  equivalent  of  anhydrous  salt 
and  2  equivalents  of  water;  1  equivalent  of  crystalized  sulphate  of  mag- 
nesia =  1*23,  contains  7  of  water  ==  63 ;  and  an  equivalent  of  crystalized 
sulphate  of  soda  =162,  contains  10  of  water  =90;  the  equivalent  of 
water  being  9.  But  it  does  not  necessarily  follow  that  a  salt  in  crystals 
contains  water,  there  being  many  crystals  which  are  anhydrous,  such  as 
nitre,  sulphate  of  potash,  &c. — (See  Crystalization.) 

WEIGHT. — In  mechanics,*  denotes  the  resistance  to  be  overcome  by 
a  machine,  whether  in  raising,  or  sustaining,  or  moving  a  heavy  body. 
The  force  applied  to  the  machine  for  this  purpose  is  called  the  moving 
power ;  and  where  the  equilibrium  subsists,  the  difference  between  the 
weight  and  the  moving  power  is  the  purchase  of  the  machine.  In  all 
cases  of  equilibrium  by  the  intervention  of  machinery,  if  the  machine  be 
put  in  motion  by  a  small  additional  force,  the  space  passed  over  by  the 
moving  power  will  be  greater  than  that  passed  over  by  the  weight,  in 
proportion  as  the  weight  is  greater  than  the  moving  power  ;  or  the  pro- 
duct of  the  weight  by  its  velocity  will  be  equal  to  the  product  of  the 
moving  power  by  its  velocity. 

Tables  of  British  Weights. 

1.  Imperial  Troy  Weight. — Standard  :  one  cubic  inch  of  distilled  wa- 
ter, at  62°  Fahrenheit's  thermometer,  the  barometer  being  30  inches, 
weighs  252*458  troy  grains. 


Troy  weight  is  used  in  weighing  gold,  silver,  jewels,  &c,  and  in  phi- 
losophical experiments. 


*  Weight,  in  physics,  that  property  in  bodies  in  virtue  of  which  they  tend  towards  thecen 
tre  of  the  earth.  In  this  sense,  weight  is  synonymous  with  gravity.  When  a  body  is  carried 
below  the  surface  of  the  earth,  its  weight  becomes  less,  because  the  matter  then  above  it  is 
drawiug  it  up,  instead  of  down,  as  before.  A  descent  of  a  few  hundred  feet  makes  a  sensi- 
ble difference,  and  at  the  centre  of  the  earth,  if  a  man  could  reach  it,  he  would  find  things  to 
have  no  weight  at  all :  and  there  would  be  neither  up  nor  down,  because  bodies  would  be 
attracted  equally  in  all  directions. 


grs. 

24: 
480: 

5760 


dwts. 

1  oz 
20  =  1  lb. 
240  =  12  =  1 


688 


WEI. 


[appendix. 


2.  Apothecaries'  Weight.  —  Standard:  the  same  as  in  troy  weight, 
with  the  ounce  divided  into  8  drachms  and  24  scruples. 

grs.     scrs.  (G) 
20  =     1     drs.  (  3  ) 
60  =     3=1     oz.  ( i ) 
480  =  24  =   8       1     lb.  (lb) 
5760  =  288=  96  =  12  =  1 

Medicines  are  compounded  by  this  weight;  but  drugs  are  usually 
bought  and  sold  by  avoirdupois  weight. 

3.  Imperial  Avoirdupois  Weight. — Standard:  the  same  as  in  troy 
weight;  and  one  avoirdupois  pound  =  7000  troy  grains. 

drs.  oz. 
16  =        1  lbs. 
256=       16  =      1  qrs. 
7168=     448  =     28=   1  cwts. 
28672=  1792=  112=  4  =  1  ton. 
573440  =  35840  =  2240  =  80  =  20  =  1 

This  weight  is  used  for  the  general  purposes  of  commerce. 

The  preceding  are  the  British  statute  weights ;  but  numerous  other 
discordant  denominations  of  weight,  generally  multiples  of  the  avoirdu- 
pois pound,  are  still  used  in  different  parts  of  the  country  for  weighing 
particular  kinds  of  merchandise.  One  of  the  most  common  of  these  is 
the  stone,  which  has  a  great  variety  of  different  significations.  In  Lon- 
don, however,  only  two  stones  are  generally  understood ;  viz.,  the  stone 
of  8  pounds  for  butchers'  meat,  and  the  stone  of  14  pounds  for  other 
commodities.  A  particular  denomination  of  weight,  a  carat,  is  used  for 
weighing  diamonds.  An  ounce  troy  is  equivalent  to  151^  carats  ;  conse- 
quently a  carat  is  nearly  equal  to  3£  grains.  In  expressing  the  fineness 
of  gold  by  carats,  the  term  rather  denotes  a  proportion  than  a  weight. 
Thus  gold  22  carats  fine,  signifies  an  alloy  such  that  the  proportion  of 
the  weight  of  pure  gold  to  that  of  the  whole  weight,  is  as  22  to  24  ;  or 
such  that  it  contains  22  parts  by  weight  of  pure  gold,  and  2  parts  of 
some  inferior  metal. 

French  System  of  Weights. — The  French  denominations  of  weight  oc- 
cur so  frequently  in  works  connected  with  the  physical  sciences,  that  it  is 
convenient  to  be  acquainted  with  their  values.  The  unit  of  weight  is 
the  gramme,  which  is  the  weight  of  the  100th  part  of  a  cubic  metre' of 
distilled  water  at  the  temperature  of  melting  ice.  A  gramme  is  equal  to 
15-434  troy  grains ;  whence  the  following  comparative  table  of  French 
with  troy  weight : — 


APPENDIX.] 


WEI. 


689 


grammes.     Troy  grains- 


Milligramme 
Centigramme 
Decigramme 

Gramme 
Decagramme 
Hectogramme 
Kilogramme 


•001  = 
•01  = 
•1  = 

grammes. 
1  = 
10  = 
100  = 
1000  = 


•01543 
•15434 
1-5434 
Troy  grains. 
15-434 
154-34 
1543-4 
15434 


Myriagramme  =  10000     =  154340 

The  kilogramme  is  equal  to  2  lbs.  3  oz.  or  4-428  drams  avoirdupois 
weight.  In  the  Systeme  Usuel  the  standards  are  the  same  as  the  above, 
but  the  denominations  are  those  which  were  anciently  in  use.  It  was 
found  impossible  to  introduce  the  new  terms.  The  divisions  are  binary. 
Half  the  kilogramme  forms  the  lime  usuel,  which  is  divided  into  halves, 
quarters,  eighths,  &c,  down  to  the  gros,  which  is  the  eighth  of  the  once, 
or  the  l-128th  of  the  lime. — (See  Measure.) 


Hectare  =  10000  sq.  metres. 

Are  =  100 

Centiare  =  1 

Kilolitre  =  1000  litres. 

Hectolitre  =  100 

Decalitre  =  10 

Litre  =  1 

Decilitre  =  01 

Centilitre  =  001 


English  foot; 

Russian  foot      -  --=1 

Paris  foot   =  1065765 

Prussian  and  Danish  foot        -  =  1-029722 

Bavarian  foot  =  0-957561 

Hanoverian  foot  =  0  958333 

Saxon  foot  =  0-9°9118 

Austrian  foot  =  1-037128' 


See  Weight. 


INDEX. 


Tage 

Accidental  colors,  601 

Acetate,  601 

of  alumina,  or  red  liquor,  how  prepared,  259,  261,  305,  601,  664 

of  copper,  305,  683 

of  iron,  how  prepared,  272,  305,  649 

of  lead,  259,  326,  305,  356,  650 

Acids,  acetic,  154,  602,  649 

chloric,  158 

chromic,  158,  216,  326 

citric,  160,  438 

gallic,  190,  284,  288,  293,  642 

hydrochloric,  or  muriatic,  164,  438 

isatinic,  86 

madderic,  _  109 

malic,  162 

muriatic,  or  hydrochloric,  164,  43S 

nitric,  168 

nitro-muriatic,  aqua-regia,  172,  462 

oleic,  656,  669 

oxalic,  173,  438 

picric,    85 

pyroligneous,  177 

rubiacic,  109 

sulphuric,  ,  179 

tannic,  190 

tartaric,  (see  tartar),  190 

icidimetry,  603 

Acidulated,  605 

Adrianople,  or  Turkey-red,  12,  305,  306,  308,  312,  317,  319 

Adulteration,  605 

Affinity,  chemical,  605 

Alizarine,  106,  605 

effects  of  (in  conjunction  with  soda)  upon  animals,  107 

Alkali,  605 

Alkalimeter,  605 

Alkana,  605 

Alkanet,  605 


INDEX. 


.  Page 

Alternants,  ...  .•  252 

Alum,  252,  321,  369,  605 

basic,  or  cubical,   „  255 

Alumina,  (see  acetate),  253,  606 

how  prepared,  256 

how  applied  to  cloth,  257 

Aluminate  of  potash,  606 

Amaranth,  418,  588 

Amber-color,  326 

Ammonia,  608 

carbonate  of,  643 

Ammoniate  of  copper,  mordant,  305 

Analogy  between  color  and  sound,  24 

Analysis,  608 

Anhydrous,  608 

Animal  and  vegetable  coloring  substances,  37 

Anotta,   44 

action  of  acids  upon,  45 

how  prepared,  45 

lake  of  (see  lakes),  97 

orange  (see  orange),  357,  588 

Antimony-orange,  136 

Archil,  46,  50 

action  of  acids,  &c.  upon,  47 

use  of  in  the  dye-house,  48 

Areometer  of  Baume,  609 

Arseniate  of  chromium,  137 

potash,  609 

soda,  1 38 

Arsenic,  610 

Ash-gray,  402 

Assistant  mordant  liquor,  275 

Astringents,  284,  610 

Atomic  weights,  or  atoms,  610 

Aune  (see  measure),  318 

Aurora,  (see  orange),  422 

Avignon,  berries  of  (see  lakes),  51 

Barwood,  ingenious  method  of  extracting  the  color  of,  51 

red,  319 

red  spirits,  how  prepared,  269,  320 

Base,  610 

Basic-alum,  253,  602 

Berries,  (see  Avignon). 

Bichlorisatin  (see  cldorine),  86 

Bichromate,  or  red  chromate  of  potash,  (see  potash),  140 

how  prepared  for  the  dyer,  140 


INDEX.  693 

/ 

Page 

Bitten  and  outline  engravings,  remarks  on,  443 

Black,  72,  101,  292,  368,  399,  404,  408,  589,  591 

Bleaching,  of  cotton,  23,  194,  213,  217,  4G0 

linen,  219 

silk,  224 

wool,  230 

old  processes  of,  195 

origin  of,  195 

powder,  adulteration  of,  202 

tests,  146,  204, 205,  207,  210, 211,  224 

the  alkaline  leys  for,  how  prepared,  207 

first  processes  of,  for  cotton,  212 

Block- printing,  hand  and  power,  490 

origin  of,  14 

Blossoin-peach,  419, 417 

Books,  chemical,  defects  of,  46,  292,  341,  346 

Blue,  274,  331,  338, 345, 348,  472 

chemic,  preparation  of,  333,  361 

color,  extraction  of,  from  buck-wheat,  72 

vat,  chemistry  of,  337 

vat,  setting  of  the,  345,  424,  472 

with  prussiate  of  potash,  274,  346,  348,  427 

with  chemic,  426 

with  berries,  423 

vitriol,  611,  683 

Bottle-green,  421 

Bran,  611 

Brandes  Chemical  Dictionary,  defects  of,  292 

Brands  of  madder-casks,  Ill 

Brazil-wood,  52 

quality  of,  how  to  determine,  53 

improved  processes  of  dyeing  with,  265,  320,  382,  432 

lakes  of,  97 

red  spirits,  265 

scarlet,  382 

Bronze,  402,  416,  495 

Brown,   54,  60,  107,  122,  124,  294,  352,  370,  399,  408,  415 

catechue,  339,  369 

iron,  363 

British-gum,  612 

Buff,  366 

yellow,  385 

Cadmium,  sulphuret  of,  139,  153,  429 

Calcination,  613 

Calcium,  613 

Calico-printing,  442 


694 


INDEX. 


Page 

Calico-printing,  general  observations  on  the  processes  of,  442 

Camwood,  54 

action  of  acids  upon,  54 

Carbonates,  149,  612 

Carbonate  of  ammonia,  612 

Carburets,  613 

Carmelite,  124 

Carmine,  54,  300 

how  prepared,  55 

lakes  of,  95 

Carminum,  68 

Carpet,  Brussels,  Wilton,  &c.,  printing  of  (see  designer  and  decorator),  516 

Persian  and  Turkey,  6 

I  "atechue,  59 

action  of  acids,  upon,  60 

character  of,  first  pointed  out  by  Kerr,  60 

brown,  359 

quality  of,  how  to  discover,  62 

Chalk,  613 

Chemic-blue,  333,  361 

Chemical  knowledge  indispensable  to  the  Dyer, . .  .23,  101,  265,  292,  294, 326.  328, 
335,  340,  362;  421,  436 

books,  defects  of,  92 

Cherry-red  (see  red),  430,  435 

China-blue  style,  569 

Chlorates,  614 

Chlorides,  614 

of  lime,  how  prepared,  207 

of  tin,  321 

Chlorimetery  224 

Chlorine,  146,  614 

destructive  properties  of  on  vegetables,  198,  216,  614 

extemporaneous  solution  of,  198 

introduction  of,  as  a  bleaching  agent,  198,  615 

Chlorindoptin,  88 

Chloronile,  87 

Chlorisatin, . . .  86 

Chocolate  ground  neutral  style,  558 

Chromate  of  lead  (see  lead),  141,  326 

Chromatics,   617 

Uhrome-orange,  or  sub-chromate  of  lead,  (see  lead),  142,  326,  360 

yellow,  139,  325 

Chromic  acid,  158,  216 

Chromium,  325,  617 

arseniate  of,  137 

Cinnabar,  617 

Cinnamon-color,  124,  152,  371,402 


INDEX. 


695 


Page 

Citric  acid,  160 

Clay,  618 

Clouding,  or  chineing  silks,  597 

Cochineal,  62 

action  of  acids  upon,  66 

coloring  principle  of,  (see  madder),  65 

qualities  and  adulteration  of,  63,  68 

Color  and  sound,  analogy  between,  24 

and  light,  theories  of,  15 

influence  of,  on  odors,  618 

Coloring  matter  of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  1,  35 

substances,  37,  136 

Colors,  gradation  of,  26,  299,  324,  331,  354,  359,  364,  367 

of  flowers,  how  produced,  34 

Combination,  625 

Combustible,  625 

Composition  of  cow-dung,  451 

Construction  of  dye-house,  &c,  297 

Copper,  acetate  of,  305 

ammoniate  of,  305 

arseniate  of,  153 

prussiate  of,  152 

Copperas  (see  sulpliates),  271,  340,  625 

impurity  of,  344,  361 

Corrosive  sublimate,  614,  626 

Cotton,  bleaching  of,   194 

dyeing  of,  ....300 

goods,  drying  of,  remarkable  phenomena,  257,  445 

union  of  with  coloring  matter,  276 

Cow-dung,  composition  of,  451 

Crimson,  47,  300,  381,  430,  433 

Crystallization,  .  ..626 

Cudbear,  68 

Cyanates,  629 

Cyanides,  629 

ferro,  P  347,629 

Cyanogen,  347,  629 

Cyanuret  of  iron,  630 

Cylinder-printing,  524 

Darkness,  effects  of  on  vegetables,  (see  light),  32,  633 

Daguerreotype,  20,  634,  637,  640 

Decantation,  630 

Decoction,  630 

Decoration,  harmony  of  colors,  &c.,  299,  324,  331,  354,  359,  364,  367 

Decrepitation,  (see  crystallization),  630 

Deliquescent,  630 


696 


INDEX. 


Page 

Designers  of  patterns,  their  prevailing  error  (see  decoration), . .  .301,  332,  360,  367 

Determination  of  the  coloring  power  of  madder,  ..  117 

Deutoxide,  630 

Discharge  style,  560 

Drabs,  60,  110,294,  363 

Drying  cotton  goods,  curious  phenomena,  257,  465 

Dunging,  washing,  &c.,  258,  447,  451 

Dye-house,  construction  of,  &c,  297 

Dyeing  of  cotton,  300,  442 

silk,  408 

wool,  234,  372 

near  alliance  of  to  the  science  of  chemistry,  (see  dyer),  51 

object  of,  15 

origin  of,  3 

Dyer,  chemical  knowledge  indispensable  to  the,.. 23,  101,  265,  292,  294,  326,  328, 
335,  340,  362,  421,436 

the,  should  be  acquainted  with  the  laws  of  light  in  relation  to  colors,  23 

the,  must  be  a  bleacher,  195 

Dyers'  spirits,  (see  mordants  and  spirits),  264, 374,  679 

Dye-woods,  extracting  coloring  matter  from,  104,  133,  322 

Ebullition,  631 

Effervescence,  632 

Efflorescence,  602,  632 

Elective  affinity,  632 

Emerald  green,  240 

Engravings,  bitten  and  outline,  443 

Essential  oils,  or  volatile  oils,  632 

Equivalents,  chemical,  633 

Ether,  action  of  on  solution  of  indigo,  84 

Evaporation,  633 

Experiments  and  observations  on  light,  633 

Extemporaneous  solution  chlorine,  198 

Extracting  coloring  matter  from  dye-woods,  104,  133,  322 

Fahrenheit,  scale  of  (see  ebullition,  hydrometer,  and  thermometer),  641 

Farina,  641 

Fawns,  60,  110,  294,  363 

Feathers,  dyeing  of,  414 

Fermentation,  442,  642 

acid,  642 

gallic,  642 

Ferric-cyanide  of  potassium  or  red  prussiate  of  potash,  347,  643 

Ferro-cyanate,  347,  643 

of  potash,  152,347 

Fibre,  644 

Filtration,  645 


INDEX.  697 

Page 

Finishing  of  calicoes,  465 

Flesh-color,  430,  434,  435 

Flowers  of  the  vegetable  kingdom,  how  colored,  31 

coloring  matter  of,  application  to  dyeing,  35 

Fustic  (see  weld  and  yellow),  69 

action  of  acids  upon,  69 

Fulling  (see  bleaching),  •  237 

Fullers-earth,  436,  645 

Gall-nuts  (see  ox-gall),  284 

substitutes  for,  646 

Gallic  acid,  how  prepared,  284,  288,  293 

Garancine,  110 

General  observations  on  calico-printing  processes,  mordants,  &c,  442 

Germination  and  growth  of  plants,  638 

Gilding  of  silk,  599 

Gilly-flower,  419 

Gradation  of  colors,  26,  299,  324,  331,  354,  359  364,  367 

Granulation  (see  crystallization  and  decrepitation),  265,  647 

Gray,  294,  339,402,  408,  415 

ash,  403 

black,  415 

iron,  403,  415 

mouse,  403 

nut,  415 

pearl,  403 

slate,  294,  415 

tawny,  403 

thorn,  415 

Green,  Scheele's  (arseniate  of  copper),  153,  359 

processes  of  dyeing,  31,  121,  359,  388,  396 

bottle,  421 

emerald,  420 

landscape,  '.  420 

pistachio,  419 

terrasse,  419 

vitriol,  647 

Growth  of  plants,  curious  experiments,  638 

Gum,  647 

Senegal,  647 

tragacanth,  648 

Harmony  of  colors,  26,  299,  324,  331,  354,  359,  364,  367 

Hematine,  70 

action  of  acids  upon,  71 

Hermatic  seal,  648 

Hydrate,  142 

/ 


698 


INDEX. 


Page 

Hydrate  of  lime,  200,  207 

Hydrochloric,  or  muriatic  acid,  164 

Hydrometer  (see  Fahrenheit  and  thermometer),  211,  648 

Hygrometric,  648 

India-rubber,  application  of,  to  engraved  rollers  or  plates,  522 

Indigo,  72 

action  of  acids  upon,  80 

chemical  nature  and  manufacture  of,  74 

commercial  value  of,  how  to  determine,  80 

erroneous  and  contradictory  statements  of  Dr.  Ure  upon,  76 

first  introduction  of,  into  Europe  73 

pure,  chemical  composition  of,  83 

Indigotine,  separation  of,  by  Fritsche,  80 

Influence  of  light  upon  vegetables,  32,  633 

Iron,  peroxide  of  (iron-buff),  149 

mordants  of,  how  prepared  (see  sulphate),  271,  276,  305,  648 

nitrate  of,  274,  351,  649 

permuriate  of  (see  muriates),  351,  649 

protosalts  of,  superiority  of  in  the  production  of  black,  102,  271,  351 

Kermes,  11,  89 

action  of  acids  upon,  90 

mineral,  89 

quality  of,  how  to  determine,  90 

Knowledge,  chemical,  indispensable  to  the  dyer, .  .23,  101,  265,  292,  294,  326,  328, 
335,  340,  362,  421,  436. 

Lac,  lac-dye,  91 

action  of  acids  upon,  93 

scarlet,  380 

seed,  93 

stic,  92 

Lakes,  preparation  of,  &c,  94 

carminated,  95 

brazil-wood,  97 

madder,  96 

red,  95 

yellow,  97 

blue,  ...97 

Landscape-green,  420 

Lavender,  266,  323,  352,  434 

Lazulite,  650 

style,  556 

Lead,  chromate  of,  139,  141,  326 

sub-chromate  of,  355,  616 

bichromate  of,  326 


INDEX. 


699 


Page 

Lead,  acetate  of,  how  prepared  (see  acetate),  259,  305,  601 

nitrate  of,  139,  326,  648 

oxide  of,  326,  328,  602 

Lecanorin,  40 

Lemon-color,  327 

Lichens,  37 

importance  of  (see  archil),  38 

varieties  of,  49,  650 

Light  and  color,  theories  of,  15 

mistaken  notions  of  writers  respecting,  16 

Ligneous,  651 

matter,  651 

Lilac,  266,  269,  323,  352,  400,  417 

Lime,  chloride  of,  200,  438 

carbonate  of,  149 

hydrate  of  (bleaching  powder),  how  prepared,  200,  207 

milk  of,  142,  338 

Linen,  bleaching  of,  219 

Litharge,  (  .  602 

Litmus,  97 

action  of  acids  upon,  98 

Litre,  651 

Lixiviation,  651 

Logwood,  98 

action  of  alkalies  upon,  101 

action  of  metallic  oxides,  &c.  upon,  102 

adulteration  of,  how  to  detect  the,  104 

Maceration,  651 

Madder,  105 

adulteration  of,  114,  116 

casks,  fraudulent  brands  of,  Ill 

bath,  effects  of  heating  beyond  a  given  temperature,  458 

bath,  effects  of  lowering  the  temperature  below  a  certain  point,  456 

dyeing  with,  257,  304,  308,  316,  318,  383,  455 

red,  108 

orange,  108 

purple,  107 

brown,  107 

Malic  acid,  162 

Mallow-color,  417,  430 

Manganese  (see  bleaching),  651 

brown,  143 

peroxide  of, ,  143,  145 

protoxide  of,  144 

sulphate  and  hypo-sulphate  of,  144 

Manipulation,  651 


700 


INDEX. 


Page 

Mazarines,  352 

Meadow-green,  420 

Measure,  652 

Merinoes,  printing  of,  582 

Milk  of  lime,  how  prepared  (see  hydrate),  142,  338 

Mineral  coloring  substances,  136 

Mordants,  nature  and  object  of,  248 

aluminous,  253,  259,  305,  321,  361,  405 

assistant  liquor,  275 

general  observations  on  (see  copper  and  ammoniate),  442 

iron,  how  prepared,  271,  274,  305,  351,  648 

lead  (see  acetate  and  red  liquor),  259,  326,  355,  601 

scarcity  of,  105 

tin,  262,  264,  305,  679 

Mordore-colors,  371,  402 

Mother-water,  655 

Mouse-gray,  403 

Mousselin  de  laines,  printing  of,  582 

Muriate  of  ammonia  (see  ammonia,  and  sal-ammoniac),  655 

tin  (see  spirits  and  mordants),  56,  262,  655 

zinc,  655 

Muriatic,  or  hydrochloric  acid,  164 


Nankeen-color   358 

Naphtha,  656 

Neutralization,  656 

Neutral  salts,  656 

Neutral  style,  556 

Newton,  his  theory  of  light,  16 

Nicaragua-wood,  120 

Nitrates  (see  iron  and  lead),  656 

Nitric  acid  (see  acids),  168 

Nitro-muriatic  acid,  or  aqua  regia,  172 

Nut-gray  (see  gray),  415 


Object  of  dyeing,  15 

Observations  on  calico-printing  processes,  442 

Oil  of  turpentine,  656 

Oleic  acid,  656 

Olive,  60,  121,  124,  149,  363,  388,  396,  421 

russet  (see  russet),  421 

Orange  107,  153,  108,  354,  357,  422,  603 

antimony,  136 

Origin  of  bleaching,  195 

block-printing,  ,  13 

dyeing,  3 

Orpiment,  yellow  sulphuret  of  arsenic,  148 


INDEX. 


701 


Page 

Outline  and  bitten  engravings,  443 

Oxalic  acid,  173,  436 

Ox-gall,  439,  656 

Oxidation,  or  oxidizement,  658 

Oxide  (see  lead,  iron,  peroxide,  and  protoxide) ,  658 


Padding  (see  calico-printing),  658 

style,  543 

Pattern  designers,  their  prevailing  error  (see  decoration),. .  301,  332,  360,  367 

Peach-blossom,  266,  269,  400,  417,  419 

Peachwood,  421 

Pearl-gray,  402,  415 

Perchloride  of  tin  (see  muriate  and  tin),  262,  679 

Permuriate  of  tin,  270,  655,  679 

iron,  351 

Peroxide  of  iron,  159,  272,  388f  649 

tin,  262,  679 

Persian  berries,  51 

lakes  of,  97 

Picric  acid,'  85 

Pigeon-necks,  400,  417 

Pink,  302,  323,  423,  433 

Plum-color,  268 

Plumb-tub,  103,  266,  268,  679 

Potash,  658 

chromate  of,  326,  616 

bichromate  of,  how  prepared,  140,  326,  351,  360,  616 

prussiate  of,  346 

Potters'  clay,  or  plastic  clay,  662 

Precipitate,  662 

Precipitation,  662 

Printing,  block,  hand,  and  power,  490 

cylinder,  524 

Protosalts  of  iron  (see  copperas  and  sulphates),  102,  271,  649 

Protoxide  of  copper,  662 

iron  (see  mordants),  150,  271,  388 

tin,  262,  679 

Prussian-blue,  153,  274,  346,  352,  663 

Prussiate  of  copper,  152 

potash,  346 

Pseuderythrim,  43 

Puces,  266,  269,  323,  352 

Purity  of  water,  .293,  432,  453,  603 

Purple,  107,  266,  300,  339,  364,  399,  418 

dye,  ancient,  description  of,  8 

origin  of,  7 

varieties  of,  7 


702 


INDEX. 


Page 

Pyroligneous  acid  (see  acids),  177 

Pyrometer,  664 

Quercitron,  121,  370,  385 

Red,  107,  108,  269,  303, 305,  308,  319,  372,  383,  435 

lakes,  95 

liquor  (see  acetate  and  mordants),  259,  261,  464 

scarlet,  302,  358,  375,  380,  382,  429 

scarlet,  of  the  scriptures,  10 

Redwood,  122 

Renovating  articles  of  dress,  &c.  (see  ox-gall),  436 

Resist  style,  549 

Rose-color,  107,  302,  382,  433,  435 

Rubber,  india,  application  of,  to  engraved  plates  or  rollers,  522 

Russet-color,  301 

Safflower  and  Prussian-blue,  dyeing  with,  352,  433 

pink,  323 

Sal-ammoniac,  667 

Sallop,  668 

Salmon-color,  110,  358 

Salt,  668 

microcosmic,  669 

of  lemons,  669 

Sandal  or  red  saunders-wood,  122 

action  of  acids  upon,  123 

Sapan-wood,  123 

Saturation,  669 

Scarlet  (see  red),  358,  375,  380,  382,  429 

Scheele's-green  (arseniate  of  copper),  153,  669 

Scouring  or  renovating  articles  of  dress,  &c.  (see  bleaching),  436 

Shade  and  tint,  definitions  of,  302 

Silicates,  669 

Silks,  chineing  or  clouding  of,  597 

cleaning  of,  436 

bleaching  of,  224 

gilding  of,  599 

dyeing  of,  408 

printing  of,  582 

Singeing,  212 

Slate-gray,  294,  403 

Soap  (see  oleic  acid),  669 

Soda,  670 

ash,  how  prepared,  208,  210 

caustic,  210 

phosphate  of,  its  effects  (in  conjunction  with  alizarine)  on  animals  107 


INDEX.  703 

Page 

Soda,  stannate  of,  270 

stanjrite  of,  271 

Specific  gravity,  671 

Spirits,  dyer's,  264 

barwood-red,  262,  320 

Brazil-wood  red,  265 

brown,  266 

crimson,  266 

drab,  266 

purple,  266 

yellow,  269 

Starch,  671 

Steam-colors,  574 

Steatite,  674 

Steiner,  his  method  of  manufacturing  garancine,  110 

Sublimation,  674 

Subsalt,  674 

Substitutes  for  woad,  133 

Sulphate  of  alumina  and  potassa,  133 

ammonia,  675 

copper,  *  675 

iron,  271,  265,  344,  675 

lead,  675 

magnesia,  675 

manganese,  676 

mercury,  676 

potash,  676 

soda,  676 

zinc,  677 

Sulphates,  674 

Sulphites,  677 

Sulphur,    677 

Sulphuration,  233,  436,  678 

Sulphuret  of  cadmium,  153,  429 

Sulphuric  acid,  179 

Sumach,  124,  289,291 

Tannic  acid,  18.1 

Tannin,  189,  283 

artificial,  678 

Tartar,  678 

Tartaric  acid,  29,  190 

Tartrate  of  potash  (see  potash),  679 

Tawny-gray  (see  gray),  403 

Theories  of  light  and  color,  15 

erroneous  opinions  respecting,  16 

Thermometer  (see  areometer,  ebullition,  and  hydrometer),  679 


704 


INDEX. 


Page 

Thorn-gray,  415 

Tin,  mordants  of  (see  mordants,  muriates,  and  dyer's  spirits),  262,  274,  679 

muriates  of,  264 

preparing  liquor,  270 

Tint  and  shade,  302 

Troy  weight  (see  weight  and  measure),  682 

Turkey  or  adrianople-red,  305,  308,  312,  317,  319 

Turmeric,  126 

action  of  acids  upon,  126 

Turnsole,  126 

Turpentine,  oil  of,  ,   682 

Ultramarine,  682 

Union  of  cotton  with  coloring  matter,  276 

Vapor,  683 

Varieties  of  white,  24,  225,  268 

Vat,  the  blue,  344,  345,  362 

woad  or  pastel,  388 

improved,  392 

Vegetable  ^kingdom,  colors  of,  1 

how  produced,  31 

Vegetables,  influence  of  light  upon,  . .  32,  633 

effects  of  darkness  upon,  32 

Verdigris,  ,  683 

Vermillion,  136,  686 

Violet,  72,  266,  365,  417 

Washing,  dunging,  &c,  258,  447,  451,  472 

Water,  purity  of,  . .   .293,  432,  453,  603 

of  crystallization,  687 

Weight  (see  measure),  687 

Weld,  126,  328,  384,  428 

action  of  acids  upon,  327 

White,  varieties  of,  24,  225 

French,  268 

Willow-green,  (see  green),  426 

Woad,  substitutes  for  (see  blue),  128 

Wool,  bleaching  of,  ,  230 

cleaning  of,  237,  372 

fulling  of,  237 

dyeing  of,  237,  372 

scouring  of,  234 


Yellow,  69,  126,  140,  148,  266,  324,  326,  328,  362,  384,  428 

buff,  385 

spirits,  how  prepared  (see  spirits),  269 


SUPPLEMEIT. 


SUPPLEMENT  CONTAINING 


recent  Discoveries  in  the  art. 


By  Robert  Macfarlane,  of  The  Scientific  American. 


CAUSE  OF  COLORS. 

All  colors  are  due  to  a  peculiar  manifestation  of  light.  The  most 
rational  theory  which  prevails  on  the  subject  is,  that  white  light  is 
caused  by  the  vibrations  of  a  subtile  ether  which  pervades  all  space ; 
and  the  different  colors,  such  as  those  of  the  rainbow,  and  those  on 
dyed  and  printed  fabrics,  are  produced  by  the  number  of  pulsations 
that  occur  in  this  ether  in  a  given  period  of  time.  According  to  the 
computations  of  Dr.  Young,  of  England — a  distinguished  expounder 
of  the  undulatory  theory  of  light — the  following  short  table  gives  the 
length  and  number  of  vibrations  per  second,  by  which  the  three  simple 
colors  are  developed. 


Length  of  vibrations 
in  parts  of  an  inch. 

Number  in  an 
inch. 

Number  in  a  second. 

Red  .    .  . 

0-0000266 

37,640 

458,000000,000000 

Yellow  .  . 

0-0000227 

44,000 

535,000000,000000 

Blue  .    .  . 

0-0000196 

51,110 

622,000000,000000 

The  velocity  of  light  is  assumed  to  be  192,000  miles  per  second. 

The  most  recent  experiments  undertaken  to  demonstrate  the  undu- 
latory theory  of  colors  are  those  of  Mr.  J.  Smith,  A.M.,  an  account  ot 
which  was  read  before  the  Manchester  (England)  Literary  and  Philo- 
sophical Society  at  its  meeting  on  the  18th  of  October,  1859.  These 
experiments  led  to  the  conclusion  that  all  varieties  of  color  are  pro- 


703 


CONTRAST  OF  COLORS. 


duced  by  pulsations  of  light  and  intervals  of  shadow  in  definite  propor- 
tions for  each  color.  That  is,  supposing  white  light  to  consist  of  the 
motion  of  a  subtile  ether,  and  blackness  an  entire  absence  of  motion, 
then  a  certain  color,  blue,  red,  or  yellow,  will  be  produced  by  the  alter- 
nate action  of  the  light  and  the  shadow.  Mr.  Smith  made  a  disc  with 
several  concentric  rings,  which  were  painted  respectively  one- third, 
two-third,  three-fourth  and  one-half  black,  the  remainder  being  left 
white,  which  disc  on  being  revolved,  the  rings  of  it  became  com- 
pletely colored — there  was  no  appearance  of  any  black  or  white.  By 
using  several  discs  containing  different  proportions  of  white  and  black, 
all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow  were  produced  before  the  Society  by  the 
light  of  a  coal-oil  lamp  and  a  reflector.  The  exact  arithmetical  deter- 
mination of  the  amount  of  light  and  shade  needful  for  each  color  has 
not  yet  been  arrived  at.  With  the  aid  of  strong  sunshine,  by  casting 
the  shadow  of  a  particular  figure  upon  a  white  wall,  so  as  to  pro- 
duce alternate  beats  of  light  and  shadow  when  the  figure  was  revolved, 
it  became  colored  on  the  wall  like  the  spectrum  cast  from  a  prism  of 
glass. 

LAW  OF  SIMULTANEOUS  CONTEAST  OF  OOLOES. 

It  was  long  believed,  and  taught  by  men  of  science,  that  there  were 
seven  distinct  colors  in  a  ray  of  light,  but  this  theory  has  been  aban- 
doned for  that  of 'the  "  triple  spectrum"  first  expounded,  we  believe, 
by  Sir  David  Brewster.  It  is  now  generally  admitted  that  there  are 
but  three  simple  colors,  called  primaries,  viz.,  Red,  Blue,  and  Yellow, 
and  all  other  colors  are  compounds  of  these  three.  Practical  dyers  have 
long  been  acquainted  with  the  correct  theory,  and  have  always  been 
able  to  produce  an  infinite  variety  of  tone  and  hue  of  colors  by  combi- 
nations of  the  three  primaries  in  varying  proportions ;  and  even  to 
make  a  good  black  with  yellow,  red,  and  blue,  such  as  by  dyeing  a 
blue  color  with  sulphate  of  indigo,  on  the  top  of  a  scarlet,  on  wool. 
Color  chemistry  as  it  relates  to  dyeing  and  calico-printing,  is  an  intricate 
and  elaborate  branch  of  practical  science,  embracing  both  quantitative 
and  qualitative  chemistry  in  a  peculiar  sense.  There  is  another  branch 
of  knowledge  which,  although  not  of  equal  importance  to  the  color  che- 
mist, yet  is  of  such  value  and  necessity,  that  he  cannot  be  a  finished  arti- 
san unless  he  becomes  master  of  it ;  this  is  a  knowledge  of  the  optical 
influence  which  is  exerted  by  one  color  upon  another  when  placed  beside 
it.  Some  of  the  greatest  living  chemists  in  the  world  are  practical 
dyers,  and  to  one  of  them — M.  Chevreul,  the  chemist  of  the  dyeing 
department  at  the  Government  Gobelins  Tapistry  Manufactory  in  Paris 
— we  are  indebted  for  the  discovery  of  the  law  of  contrast  in  colors. 
The  greatest  painters  have  lived  unacquainted  with  this  law  except  by 
intuition ;  now  it  is  rendered  quite  plain,  and  dyers,  printers,  carpet- 
weavers,  painters,  and  decorators  should,  for  their  own  interests,  study 


CONTRAST  OF  COLORS. 


709 


this  subject.  We  can  only  give  some  idea  of  its  nature  in  our  limited 
space. 

As  there  are  white,  red,  blue  and  yellow  rays  in  light,  what  becomes 
of  all  the  other  colors  when  a  pencil  of  light  falls  upon  any  single 
colored  body  ?  To  such  a  question,  the  answer  given  by  Chevreul  is 
very  satisfactory.  He  says  :  u  It  must  not  be  supposed  that  a  red  or 
yellow  body  reflects  only  red,  or  yellow  rays  besides  white  light;  they 
each  reflect  all  kinds  of  colored  rays :  only  those  rays  which  lead  us 
to  judge  the  bodies  to  be  red,  or  yellow,  being  more  numerous  than 
the  other  rays  reflected,  produce  a  greater  effect.  Nevertheless,  those 
other  rays  have  a  certain  influence  in  modifying  the  action  of  the  red 
or  yellow  rays  upon  the  organ  of  sight ;  and  this  will  explain  the 
innumerable  varieties  of  hue  which  may  be  remarked  among  different 
red  and  yellow  substances.  It  is  also  difficult  not  to  admit  that,  among 
the  differently  colored  rays  reflected  by  bodies,  there  is  a  certain 
number  of  them  which,  being  complementary  to  each  other,  go  to 
reform  white  light  upon  reaching  the  eye."  The  following  is  Chevreul's 
definition  of  the  law  of  simultaneous  contrast  of  colors.  "  If  we  look 
simultaneously  upon  two  stripes  of  different  tones  of  the  same  color, 
or  upon  two  stripes  of  the  same  tone  of  different  colors,  placed  side  by 
side,  if  the  two  stripes  are  not  too  wide,  the  eye  perceives  certain 
modifications  which  in  the  first  place  influence  the  intensity  of  color, 
and  in  the  second,  the  optical  composition  of  the  two  juxtaposed  colors 
respectively.  Now  as  these  modifications  make  the  stripes  appear 
different  from  what  they  really  are,  I  give  to  them  the  name  of 
simultaneous  contrast  of  colors  ;  and  I  call  contrast  of  tone  the  modifi- 
cation in  intensity  of  color,  and  contrast  of  color  that  which  affects  the 
optical  composition  of  each  j  uxtaposed  color." 

The  necessity  for  dyers  and  other  color-chemists  becoming  acquainted 
with  this  law,  is  demonstrated  by  the  following  instances:  At  a  cer- 
tain calico-printing  establishment  in  France  they  possessed  a  recipe  for 
printing  green,  which  up  to  a  certain  period  had  always  succeeded, 
when  they  fancied  it  began  to  give  bad  results.  They  were  lost  in 
conjecture  upon  the  cause,  when  a  person,  who,  at  the  Gobelins  in 
Paris,  had  followed  Chevreul's  researches  on  contrast,  recognised  that 
the  green  of  which  they  complained,  being  printed  upon  a  ground  of 
blue,  tended  to  become  yellow,  through  the  influence  of  orange,  the 
complementary  of  the  ground.  Consequently,  he  advised  that  the 
proportion  of  blue  in  the  coloring  composition  should  be  increased,  in 
order  to  correct  the  effect  of  contrast.  The  recipe  modified  after  this 
suggestion,  gave  the  beautiful  green  which  they  had  before  obtained. 

This  example  demonstrates  that  every  recipe  for  coloring  composi- 
tions intended  to  be  applied  upon  a  ground  of  another  color  must  bo 
modified  conformably  to  the  effect  which  the  ground  will  produce  upon 
the  color  of  the  composition.  It  proves  also  that  it  is  much  easier  for 
a  painter  to  correct  an  effect  of  contrast  than  it  is  for  a  calico-printer, 


710 


CONTRAST  OF  COLORS. 


supposing  that  both  are  ignorant  of  the  law  of  contrast ;  for  if  the  first 
perceives  in  painting  a  green  pattern  on  a  blue  drapery,  that  the  green 
appears  too  yellow,  it  is  sufficient  for  him  to  add  a  little  blue  to  the 
green,  to  correct  the  defect.  It  is  this  great  facility  in  correcting  the 
ill  effects  of  certain  contrasts  which  explains  why  they  so  often  succeed 
in  so  doing  without  being  able  to  account  for  it. 

Certain  French  drapers  having  given  to  a  calico-printer  some  cloths 
of  a  single  color, — red,  violet,  and  blue, — upon  which  they  wished 
black  figures  to  be  printed,  complained  that  upon  the  red  cloths  he  had 
placed  green  patterns,  upon  the  violet,  greenish-yellow,  and  upon  the 
blue,  orange-brown  or  copper- colored,  instead  of  the  blach,  which  they 
had  ordered.  To  convince  them  that  they  had  no  ground  for  com- 
plaint, it  sufficed  to  have  recourse  to  the  following  proofs : 

Ohevreul  surrounded  the  patterns  with  white  paper,  so  as  to  conceal 
the  ground,  when  the  designs  then  appeared  black. 

He  placed  some  cuttings  of  black  cloth  upon  stuffs  colored  red,  violet 
and  blue ;  the  cuttings  appeared  like  the  printed  designs,  i.  e.,  of  the 
color  complementary  to  the  ground,  although  the  same  cuttings,  when 
placed  upon  a  white  ground,  were  of  a  beautiful  black. 


A. 


ANILINE  COLORS. — Among  the  many  remarkable  discoveries  in 
modern  chemistry  none  are  more  interesting  than  the  peculiar  coloring 
substance  derived  from  the  products  of  distilled  coal  tar,  termed  aniline. 
In  one  instance  we  have  read  that  Professor  Hoffman  was  the  dis- 
coverer of  this  material ;  in  another,  Dr.  Grace  F.  Calvert,  of  Manches- 
ter, England.  It  has  been  called  "  the  purple-dye  of  coal  tar,"  but 
other  substances  than  coal  tar  are  requisite  to  its  manufacture.  Accord- 
ing to  the  discoveries  of  C.  B.  Mansfield,  of  Cambridge,  England,  made 
some  years  ago,  several  sub-spirituous  oils  (light  fluid  hydrocarbons) 
of  different  specific  gravities  are  obtained  by  distilling  coal  tar  at 
various  degrees  of  temperature,  and  treating  them,  with  acids.  These 
have  been  called  eupion,  naphtha,  nitro-benzole,  and  benzin.  They  are 
all  more  or  less  volatile  and  peculiar  in  their  character ;  some  are  very 
pungent  and  unpleasant  in  their  odor,  such  as  naphtha,  while  nitro- 
benzin  has  a  rather  agreeable  fragrance.  It  is  from  benzin  that  aniline 
is  obtained.  It  is  submitted  to  the  action  of  concentrated  nitric  acid, 
or  to  a  mixture  of  nitric  and  sulphuric  acids,  and  when  distilled  gives  a 
reddish  liquid,  which  is  the  crude  nitro-benzine.  By  subjecting  this 
product  to  one  or  two  distillations,  we  obtain  a  pale  yellow  liquid,  of 
an  agreeable  odor,  resembling  that  of  bitter  almonds,  of  a  density 
much  superior  to  that  of  water.  This  product  is  then  submitted  to  the 
action  of  nascent  hydrogen,  and  is  transformed  into  aniline,  which  may 
be  purified  by  one  or  two  distillations.  It  presents  itself,  then,  under 
the  form  of  an  oleaginous  liquid,  white  when  first  obtained,  but  soon 
becoming  yellow,  and  then  red.  By  concentration  it  may  be  rendered 
into  a  paste,  -also  a  dry  powder  for  drying  purposes.  The  formula  of 
aniline  is  C12  H7N.  It  is  formed  under  a  variety  of  circumstances,  and 
can  be  made  from  indigo  by  distillation,  as  well  as  from  coal  tar.  Pro- 
fessor Hoffman  is  stated  to  have  first  obtained  it  by  treating  coal  tar 
with  hydrochloric  (muriatic)  acid.    From  indigo  it  is  derived  by  dis- 


712 


ANI 


solving  it  in  a  powdered  state  by  a  very  strong  lye  of  potassa,  then 
heating  the  mass  highly  until  it  becomes  dry.  By  the  analysis  of  Dr. 
Calvert,  the  tar  produced  from  the  distillation  of  common  cannel  coal 
contains  9  parts  benzine,  14  of  carbolic  acid,  15  of  naphthaline,  40  of  neu- 
tral hydrates  of  carbon,  and  22  of  pitch.  Carbolic  acid  is  a  most  power- 
ful disinfectant,  and  possesses  astonishing  preservative  qualities  for 
dyed  furs  and  skins,  when  a  very  minute  quantity  is  brushed  over 
their  inside  surfaces  with  a  sponge.  It  has  a  pungent  odor,  not  very 
agreeable,  but  this  may  be  modified  with  gum-benzoin.  Carbolic  acid 
has  also  been  called  phenol,  phenic  acid,  phenic  alcohol,  and  hydrate 
of  phenyle. 

By  the  employment  of  oxydizing  agents  with  aniline  the  most  beau- 
tiful shades  of  purple,  lilac,  &c,  have  been  produced  on  silk  and  fine 
wool.  It  is  asserted  that  such  colors  are  as  rich  as  those  obtained 
from  archil,  and  that  they  are  far  more  desirable,  because  they  are  fast, 
being  capable  of  withstanding  the  action  of  acids,  alkalies,  and  sun- 
light. Although  archil  lilacs  are  very  brilliant,  they  are  very  subject 
to  both  chemical  and  sun-light  changes,  as  they  fade  rapidly  when 
exposed  to  the  solar  rays.  A  patent  was  granted  to  R.  D.  Kay,  of 
Accrington,  England,  on  the  7th  of  May,  1859,  for  treating  aniline  for 
dyeing  as  follows : — About  50  parts  aniline  by  weight  are  mixed  with 
40  of  sulphuric  acid,  of  specific  gravity  1*85,  diluted  with  1400  parts 
of  water.  To  this  is  also  added  200  parts  of  the  peroxyde  of  manga- 
nese, and  all  heated  in  a  leaden  vessel  up  to  212°  Fah.  The  manga- 
nese is  added,  and  the  whole  stirred  until  no  further  precipitate  takes 
place.  The  liquid  product  contains  the  coloring  matter  in  solution, — it 
is  aniline  oxydized,  which  is  separated  by  filtration.  To  this,  ammonia 
is  added  in  liquid,  to  neutralize  any  free  acid  that  may  remain,  and  then 
by  adding  more  peroxyde  of  manganese,  the  coloring  matter  is  thrown 
down  as  a  precipitate ;  this  is  afterwards  filtered  and  digested  in  alco- 
hol. 

ANILINE  PURPLE. — When  aniline  is  treated  with  sulphuric  acid 
it  becomes  a  sulphate.  When  this  is  treated  with  a  solution  of  bichro- 
mate of  potash  to  neutralize  the  acid,  and  the  whole  left  to  stand  for 
12  hours  (after  being  stirred),  a  brown  precipitate  falls  down,  which 
when  washed,  dried,  and  powdered,  is  afterwards  dissolved  in  alcohol  or 
methylated  spirits.  By  the  addition  of  some  oxalic  or  tartaric  acid  to 
this,  purple  and  lilac  colors  are  produced  on  silk  and  wool ;  the  depth 
of  shade  being  in  proportion  to  the  quantity  of  aniline  used. 

ANILINE  RED. — A  patent  was  granted  to  R.  A.  Brooman,  of 
London,  on  the  12th  April,  1859,  for  the  preparation  of  aniline  to 
make  red  colors  for  textile  fabrics  as  follows : — A  mixture  of  aniline 
and  anhydrous  bichloride  of  tin  are  first  heated  up  together  to  the 
boiling  point,  and  then  boiled  for  15  minutes.  At  first  the  mixture 
is  of  a  yellowish  tint,  but  it  finally  becomes  a  beautiful  red  when  held 
up  to  the  light,  although,  in  a  very  large  quantity,  it  appears  to  be  of  a 


ANI 


713 


blackish  crimson  color.  When  hot,  the  liquor  maintains  its  liquid  con- 
dition ;  but  on  becoming  cold,  it  assumes  a  jelly  state.  While  still 
warm,  the  liquor  is  to  be  filtered  to  free  the  coloring  matter  from 
several  impurities.  By  adding  the  tartrate  of  potash  or  the  acetate 
of  lead  to  the  liquor  while  hot,  all  the  coloring  matter  is  precipitated, 
and  when  it  becomes  cold  it  may  thus  be  obtained  solid,  to  be  used 
like  the  extract  of  logwood  in  dyeing.  The  red  solution  of  aniline 
thus  obtained  may  be  used  with  a  pyroligneous  acid  mordant,  or 
the  nitrate  and  acetate  of  lead,  in  dyeing.  To  print  calicoes 
with  this  preparation  of  aniline,  a  very  concentrated  extract  is  re- 
quired, which  is  mixed  with  dextrine  or  gum  to  make  it  into  a  printing 
paste.  Acetic  acid  and  alcohol  will  also  precipitate  the  extract.  The 
bichloride  of  mercury  (corrosive  sublimate),  the  protochloride  of 
copper,  and  the  perchloride  of  iron,  can  also  be  employed  to  mix  with 
the  aniline  as  substitutes  for  the  bichloride  of  tin. 

ANILINE  LILACS  AND  DRABS. — A  patent  was  granted  to  J. 
T.  Beale  and  T.  K  Kirkham  (England),  May  13th,  1859,  for  treating 
aniline  for  dyeing  purposes.  They  take  either  the  sulphate,  muriate 
nitrate,  or  any  of  the  salts  of  aniline,  or  an  acid  solution  of  it,  and 
add  common  bleaching  powder  (chloride  of  lime)  to  it,  and  produce 
various  hues  of  fast  colors.  To  a  solution  of  nitrate,  acetate,  or  simple 
aniline,  in  water,  an  equal  measure  of  acetic  acid  is  added.  To  this 
solution  some  chloride  of  lime  is  also  tfdded,  and  a  change  in  the  color 
of  the  solution  at  once  takes  place.  The  shade  of  the  liquor  indicates 
the  tone  of  color  to  be  produced  by  it  on  textile  fabrics.  By  varying 
the  quantities  of  these  substances,  different  shades  may  be  produced, 
from  a  blue  to  a  lilac,  purple,  violet,  slate,  and  drab.  It  is  well  known 
to  dyers  that,  by  using  the  same  substances  in  dyeing  (only  in  different 
quantities — strong  and  weak),  browns,  drabs,  &c,  are  colored ;  and  so 
it  is  with  using  aniline  of  different  degrees  of  strength,  according  to 
the  shades  desired.  When  preparing  aniline  for  dyeing,  the  chloride 
must  be  added  very  cautiously  until  the  proper  shade  is  attained, 
because  it  is  the  re-agent  which  "  tones"  the  colors.  The  following  is 
one  method  of  practically  using  the  aniline :  Dissolve  as  much  aniline 
as  can  be  taken  up  in  a  certain  quantity  of  water — say  one  gallon — ■ 
and  to  this  add  one  gallon  of  strong  acetic  acid,  and  a  pint  of  the  hy- 
pochlorite of  lime.  The  whole  is  then  carefully  stirred,  and  the  color 
of  the  liquid  becomes  a  violet  of  an  intensity  proportioned  to  the 
amount  of  chlorine  used,  the  greater  the  quantity  of  the  latter  the 
lighter  the  shades  produced.  According  to  the  amount  of  hypochlorite 
added,  the  hues  of  aniline  will  vary  from  a  violet  to  a  drab.  With 
aniline  liquors  thus  prepared,  silk  maybe  dyed  various  shades  without 
mordants ;  with  mordants,  both  wool  and  cotton  fabrics  may  be  dyed, 
and  strong  extracts  may  be  employed  for  printing.  The  bichloride  of 
tin,  the  acetate  of  copper,  and  the  bichloride  of  mercury,  may  be 
used  for  mordants. 


714 


BLA 


As  a  very  small  quantity  of  aniline  is  derived  from  a  great  amount 
of  coal  tar,  and  the  processes  for  its  manufacture  are  numerous, 
tedious,  and  expensive,  it  is  a  very  dear  coloring  substance,  and  cannot 
be  generally  used,  on  this  account,  at  present.  By  improvements  in 
the  processes  of  its  manufacture  it  may  yet  become  so  reduced  in 
price  as  to  be  commonly  applied. 

TESTS  FOR  ANILINE.— If  aniline,  or  one  of  its  salts,  be  mixed, 
even  in  very  small  quantity,  upon  a  porcelain  plate,  with  a  few  drops 
of  concentrated  sulphuric  acid,  and  a  drop  of  a  solution  of  chromate 
of  potash,  the  mixture  acquires  a  pure  blue  color  in  a  few  minutes. 
This  color,  however,  disappears  after  at  a  time. 

ARCHIL  EXTRACT. — The  lichen  archil  has  usually  been  made 
into  a  preparation  for  dyeing  lilacs,  and  light  purple  colors  on  silk,  by 
fermenting  it  with  ammonia.  It  has  generally  been  kept  and  trans- 
ported in  casks,  but  a  patent  was  lately  granted  to  B.  &  C.  L.  Smith, 
of  Spitalfields,  England,  for  making  archil  extract,  similar  to  that  of 
logwood.  The  coloring  matter  of  the  liquid  is  precipitated  by  adding 
common  salt  brine  to  it,  after  which,  it  is  filtered,  collected  in  the  form 
of  a  paste,  washed  and  dried.  It  may  now  be  pulverized,  and  used 
either  for  printing  or  dyeing.  Other  substances,  such  as  alum,  will 
also  precipitate  the  coloring  matter,  from  the  ammoniacal  liquid. 

ANATTO  GOLD  AND  YELLOW. — First  handle  the  silk  in  a 
bath  of  anatto  and  soap,  until'it  has  acquired  a  deep  reddish  yellow 
shade ;  then  take  it  out,  wash  it  in  cold  water,  wring  it,  and  run  it 
through  a  bath  of  cold  muriate  of  tin  of  about  2°  Beaume  in  strength, 
after  which,  it  is  run  through  a  hot  bath  of  Persian  or  Turkish  berries. 
Cotton,  as  well  as  silk,  may  be  dyed  in  this  manner.  A  patent  was 
granted  in  England  on  the  12th  of  April,  1859,  to  Samuel  Tatton,  of 
Leek,  in  Staffordshire,  England,  for  this  method  of  dyeing  yellow.  The 
more  common  process,  and  one  which  appears  equally  as  good,  is  to 
manipulate  the  silk  in  a  bath  of  anatto,  as  described,  then  wash,  and 
afterwards  dye  a  yellow  on  the  top  of  the  anatto,  with  quercitron 
bark  and  a  little  muriate  of  tin  in  a  hot  bath.  All  anatto  colors  fade 
rapidly  when  exposed  to  sunlight.  Were  it  not  for  this  fugitive  pro- 
perty, this  dye  would  be  more  generally  employed,  owing  to  its  cheap- 
ness, and  the  facility  with  which  cotton  and  silk  may  be  dyed  with  it. 
Some  of  the  fixing  agents  employed  by  photographers  might  possibly 
render  it  as  durable  under  the  solar  beams. 

B. 

FAST  BLACK. — A  common  method  of  making  writing  ink  is  by 
combining  a  small  portion  of  the  bi- chromate  of  potash  with  logwood. 
An  application  of  this  nature  has  lately  been  applied  by  N.  Alexis 
Grumel,  of  Paris,  who  secured  a  patent  for  the  process  on  the  8th  of 


BLE 


715 


April,  1859.  The  object  of  the  discovery,  he  states,  is  the  means  of 
obtaining  a  fast  black  dye  without  the  use  of  indigo — a  dip  in  the  blue 
vat  having  been  given  generally  to  what  are  called  "  fast  blacks  "  by 
the  old  process.  For  10  lbs.  of  cotton,  3^  lbs.  of  the  dry  extract  of 
logwood  are  dissolved  in  about  20  quarts  of  water,  or  such  a  quantity 
as  the  yarn  may  be  tramped  or  padded  in  it  in  two  pound  bunches  at 
once,  and  in  a  small  tub,  each  bunch  receiving  about  four  quarts  of 
the  fresh  liquor,  or  if  less  water  will  answer,  so  much  the  better.  Each 
bunch  of  yarn  having  been  properly  padded,  is  wrung  out  and  exposed 
.  to  dry  in  the  atmosphere.  This  is  the  first  operation ;  the  second  is 
the  mordanting  process.  About  three-fifths  of  a  pound  of  the  bi- 
chromate of  potash,  and  three-sevenths  of  a  pound  of  crystallized  soda 
(common  soda  ash),  are  dissolved  in  three  quarts  of  water,  and  placed 
in  a  small  tub,  and  two  pounds  of  the  dried  yarn  are  padded  in  this ; 
while  in  another  vessel  a  solution  made  of  ly'g-  lb.  of  bi-chromate  of 
potash  and  f  lb.  of  crystallized  soda  are  dissolved  in  17  pints  of  water, 
as  a  fresh  liquor  for  each  two  pounds  of  the  yarn  to  be  padded  in,  the 
old  liquor  never  being  thrown  out.  The  yarn  is  wrung  out  of  this, 
then  washed  in  cold  water  and  dried.  Linen  and  silk,  it  is  stated,  are 
dyed  in  the  same  manner,  but  wool,  instead  of  having  a  similar  mor- 
dant, has  one  consisting  of  §  lb.  of  sulphate  of  copper  and  §  lb.  of 
the  bi-chromate — the  crystals  of  soda  being  omitted,  and  the  wool  is 
boiled  instead  of  being  simply  padded,  as  in  the  case  of  the  cotton. 

BLACK  ON  SILK. — A  very  simple  method  of  dyeing  black  on  silk 
is  to  mordant  the  silk  first  with  the  sulphate  of  iron  and  the  sulphate 
of  copper  together,  with  some  fustic  liquor.  About  one  pound  of  cop- 
peras and  four  ounces  of  sulphate  of  copper  are  sufficient  for  ten  lbs. 
of  silk.  Enough  of  fustic  should  be  also  added  to  render  the  silk  an 
olive  green  color.  The  heat  of  the  bath  may  be  about  190°  Fah.,  and 
the  goods  may  be  handled  in  it  about  one  hour.  After  being  taken  out 
and  aired,  the  silk  is  handled  for  three-fourths  of  an  hour  in  a  liquor 
of  hot  logwood,  obtained  from  boiling  four  pounds  for  one  hour. 

BLEACHING. — By  the  old  method  of  bleaching,  some  of  the 
chlorine  wa3  generally  left  in  goods ;  this  tended  to  injure  their  tex- 
ture. To  neutralize  the  chlorine,  Professor  Eben.  N.  Horsford,  of 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  invented  and  secured  a  patent,  in  1854,  for  what  is 
called  "  Anti-chloride  of  lime."  It  is  prepared  by  passing  the  fumes 
of  burning  sulphur  into  rnilk  of  lime,  contained  in  a  suitable  vessel 
provided  with  agitators.  The  substance  thus  obtained  is  precipitated, 
dried,  an  1  preserved  for  use.  The  goods,  when  taken  out  of  the  com- 
mon chlorine  liquors,  are  passed  through  water  slightly  acidulated, 
and  containing  the  anti- chlorine  in  suspension.  This  substance  is 
now  used  in  some  of  our  bleach  works.  The  employment  of  muriatic 
acid  as  a  substitute  for  sulphuric,  as  an  anti- chlorine,  is  now  becoming 
more  common.  Chlorine  gas  is  superior  to  chlorine  liquor  for  bleach- 
ing, and  in  many  instances  it  is  so  applied  in  paper  mills.    The  method 


716 


DET 


of  using  it  is  somewhat  more  troublesome,  and  were  this  not  so,  it 
would  be  well  to  substitute  it  entirely  for  the  more  common  modes. 

MANGANESE  BLUE. — A  patent  was  obtained  by  A.  Martin 
(England),  December,  1854,  for  preparing  cotton  goods  in  a  bath  of 
manganese  prior  to  dipping  in  a  warm  alkaline  indigo  vat.  The  cotton 
cloth  or  yarn,  after  being  dyed  in  the  vat,  is  washed  in  cold  water, 
then  passed  through  a  bath  of  oxalic  acid  of  sufficient  strength  to 
discharge  the  manganese.  The  writer  of  this  saw  the  oxyde  of  man- 
ganese employed  for  the  same  purpose  25  years  ago,  and  the  blues 
thus  dyed  were  about  twice  as  intense,  with  the  same  number  of 
dips,  as  by  the  ordinary  mode ;  but  the  goods  were  liable  to  become 
uneven,  and  the  indigo  vats  were  more  difficult  to  keep  in  order. 
Probably,  these  obstacles  to  its  use  have  been  overcome  by  Mr. 
Martin. 

BLUE  FROM  MOLYBDATES.— The  employment  of  the  molyb- 
date  of  soda  and  ammonia  was  suggested  by  Dr.  Kurrer,  of  Germany, 
some  years  since,  as  a  cheap  substitute  for  indigo,  and  he  stated  that 
an  intense  dark  blue  was  obtained  on  silk  with  a  preparation  of 
molybdic  acid  and  protochloride  of  tin,  when  the  fabric  was  impreg- 
nated with  molybdate  of  ammonia ;  but  such  colors  have  not  yet 
superseded  those  of  indigo,  and  probably  never  will.  A  topical  color, 
very  durable  under  the  influence  of  light,  may  be  produced  on  cotton 
goods  by  mixing  a  solution  of  molybdate  of  soda  with  albumen  or 
dextrine,  and  printing  it  on  the  cloth.  After  the  molybdate  is  dried, 
it  is  passed  first  through  a  bath  of  warm  diluted  hydrochloric  acid, 
then  through  another  of  protochloride  of  tin,  where  the  blue  color  is 
developed. 

C. 

CHROME    GREENS. — M.   Arnauden,  of  Turin,  has  produced 

some  new  beautiful  chrome  green  colors  for  painting  and  printing, 
which,  according  to  Dr.  F.  Grace  Calvert,  of  Manchester,  the  distin- 
guished chemist,  appear  to  be  monohydrates  of  sesquioxyde  of  chrome 
— Cr2  O3  +  HO.  This  color  is  prepared  by  exposing  the  bichromate 
of  potash  mixed  with  phosphoric  acid,  and  any  oxydising  substance, 
such  as  ammonia,  for  some  time  to  the  action  of  heat.  The  soluble 
salts  are  then  removed  by  washing.  These  greens  possess  the  curious 
property  of  appearing  green  under  the  influence  of  artificial  light, 

while  others  appear  like  blue  colors, 
i 

D. 

DETECTING  DYE,  USED  IN  DYEING  AND  CALICO 
PRINTING. — It  is  not  unfrequently  desirable  to  know,  with  regard 


DET 


717 


to  a  dyed  stuff,  in  what  manner  it  has  been  dyed,  and  what  dyeing 
material  has  been  employed.  This  cannot  always  be  decided  by  the 
appearance ;  for  example,  in  the  case  of  a  dark  blue,  the  question  rises 
whether  the  ground  is  pure  indigo  or  pure  logwood,  or  a  mixture  of 
both,  or  whether  Prussian  potash-blue  is  not  present,  &c.  For  this 
purpose,  recourse  must  be  had  to  chemical  re-agents. 

In  order  to  ascertain  what  mordants  have  been  used,  the  most  accu- 
rate method  is  to  incinerate  a  sufficiently  large  piece  of  the  stuff,  and 
examine  the  ash. 

Blue  Colors. — These  may  consist  of  indigo,  logwood,  Prussian  blue, 
or  ultramarine. 

Indigo  blue  is  fixed  on  cloth  in  various  ways  :  First,  in  the  blue  vat ; 
Secondly,  as  so-called  China  or  English  blue,  blue  patterns  upon  a 
white  ground,  fixed,  according  to  the  principle  of  the  blue  vat,  with 
lime  and  sulphate  of  iron ;  Thirdly,  as  pencil  blue,  the  indigo  being 
deoxidized  by  means  of  oxide  of  tin  and  potash ;  and  Fourthly,  as 
soluble  indigo. 

The  first  three  blues  are  not  acted  upon  by  dilute  acids  or  alkalies. 
By  chlorine  and  nitric  acid,  on  the  contrary,  they  are  destroyed. 
When  the  stuffs  decolorized  by  chlorine  are  washed  and  dipped  in  a 
solution  of  logwood,  the  first  two  remain  colorless  because  they  con- 
tain no  mordant,  while  the  stuff  dyed  with  pencil  blue  becomes  red  on 
account  of  the  tin  which  it  contains. 

The  blue  of  soluble  indigo,  and  that  obtained  with  cyanide  of  potas- 
sium, agree  in  being  destroyed  by  alkalies ;  at  the  same  time,  how- 
ever, the  blue  of  indigo  leaves  a  white  ground,  while  that  of  the 
cyanide  leaves  a  rusty  yellow  ground,  on  account  of  the  iron  mordant 
employed.  In  order  to  remove  all  doubt,  a  few  drops  of  acidulated 
solution  of  cyanide  of  potassium  should  be  added,  which,  if  iron  is 
present,  reproduces  the  blue  color.  This  confirmatory  test  should 
always  be  used  in  the  case  of  green  colors. 

Prussian  blue  may  be  recognised  by  its  being  decolorized  by  alkalies, 
but  not  by  chloride  of  lime,  while  the  latter  re-agent  destroys  indigo 
blue.  The  appearance  alone  is  sufficient  to  indicate  whether  the  blue 
is  ordinary  Prussian  blue,  or  oleu  de  France,  prepared  with  stannate 
of  potash. 

Logwood  blue  may  easily  be  recognised  from  the  fact  that  it  is 
destroyed  by  weak  acids,  and  becomes  red  ;  in  most  cases  this  is  a 
sufficient  ground  for  inferring  the  presence  of  logwood,  &c. 

"When  the  color  to  be  examined  is  a  mixed  one,  for  example,  logwood 
blue,  with  Prussian  blue  or  indigo,  the  color  of  the  logwood  is  first 
destroyed  by  dilute  acid,  the  stuff  washed,  and  treated  with  chlorine^ 
to  ascertain  whether  the  ground-color  is  indigo  or  Prussian  blue. 

Ultramarine  may  usually  be  recognised  by  its  peculiar  tint ;  after 
incinerating  the  stuff,  it  remains  unaltered  in  the  ash.  Hydrochloric 
acid  dec  omposes  it,  disengaging  at  the  same  time  an  unpleasant  odor 


718 


DET 


of  sulphuretted  hydrogen.  When  the  ultramarine  is  imprinted  with 
varnish,  the  stuff  must  be  moistened  with  sether  before  the  hydro- 
chloric acid  will  act. 

Red  Colors. — With  the  exception  of  safflower,  the  red  coloring 
matters  require  a  preparation  of  alumina  or  tin. 

Safflower  may  be  easily  recognised  by  its  color  being  discharged  by 
caustic  potash  or  soda.  Madder  colors,  when  treated  with  hydro- 
chloric acid,  acquire  a  yellow  or  orange  tint  without  any  shade  of 
puce ;  upon  then  being  treated  with  milk  of  lime,  the  color  becomes 
violet  at  those  places  where  the  hydrochloric  acid  has  acted.  The 
violet  is  permanent,  and  by  boiling  with  soap  passes  into  rose  color. 

The  madder  red  colors  are  less  susceptible  of  alteration  by  acids  the 
more  they  have  been  brightened  by  soap,  and  the  higher  the  tempera- 
ture at  which  this  took  place.  The  great  durability  of  the  Turkish 
red  is  owing  to  this  fact. 

The  red  and  rose  colors  from  madder  are  separable  into  several 
kinds — Turkish  red  and  rose,  ordinary  madder  red  and  rose,  the  true 
topical  red,  and  the  colors  from  garancine  and  garanceux. 

Turkish  red  may  be  known  by  its  brightness  and  indestructibility  by 
acids.  Ordinary  madder  red,  when  brightened,  scarcely  differs  in  any 
particular  from  a  true  topical  color.  The  only  difference  is  in  the 
mode  of  preparation.  As  the  topical  color  is  prepared  before  printing 
with  tin,  and  after  printing  the  stuff  is  steamed,  the  white  is  some- 
what yellowish,  and  becomes  colored  in  a  decoction  of  logwood.  The 
red  and  rose  from  garancine  and  garanceux  differ  from  the  above 
colors  in  not  bearing  brightening  with  soap,  acids,  and  alkalies.  When 
treated  with  hydrochloric  acid,  they  pass  into  orange,  and  do  not  then 
give  a  violet,  but  a  dull  blue  color,  with  milk  of  lime. 

The  tone  of  color  is  sufficient  to  distinguish  between  colors  pro- 
duced from  garancine  or  garanceux,  the  latter  possessing  an  orange 
shade.  When  the  red  is  accompanied  by  violet,  the  distinction  is  still 
more  easy,  because  garancine  yields  a  violet,  which  is  nearly  as  beau- 
tiful as  that  from  madder,  while  the  violet  from  garanceux  is  more 
reddish-gray. 

The  red  colors  from  Brazil-wood  and  cochineal,  when  treated  with 
hydrochloric  acid  and  tin  salt,  become  gooseberry  red ;  and  then  milk 
of  lime  produces  a  violet  of  little  permanence,  wThich  disappears 
entirely  on  subsequent  boiling  with  soap,  while  the  madder  colors 
acquire  their  greatest  brilliancy  by  this  treatment. 

The  red  from  cochineal  differs  from  that  of  Brazil-wood  in  tone, 
and  in  its  behavior  with  concentrated  sulphuric  acid;  the  former 
becomes  bright  cherry  red,  the  latter  orange. 

Yellow  Colors. — The  yellow  of  quercitron  is  discharged  by  chlorine 
and  sulphurous  acid,  but  it  is  not  sensibly  changed  to  orange  by  either 
caustic  potash  or  tin  salt. 

The  yellow  of  buckthorn  berries  is  likewise  destroyed  by  chlorine ; 


EXT 


719 


caustic  potash  renders  it  bright  yellow.  Heated  with  tin  salt,  it 
passes  into  orange  ;  with  sulphuric  acid,  it  acquires  a  stone  color. 

The  orange  and  nankeen  colors  from  fustic  and  fustet  are  changed  to 
red  by  sulphuric  acid ;  treated  with  potash,  they  acquire  a  color  resem- 
bling that  of  catechu  ;  they  are  discharged  by  nitric  acid. 

The  yellow  from  sumach  acquires  greater  brightness  with  tin  salt ; 
with  nitric  acid,  it  becomes  red ;  sulphuric  acid  does  not  produce  much 
alteration ;  sulphate  of  iron  changes  it  to  gray. 

The  yellow  from  arnotto  is  but  little  affected  by  chlorine ;  concen- 
trated sulphuric  acid  changes  it  to  a  bluish-green ;  with  nitric  acid  it 
assumes  a  darker  color,  and  then  disappears  entirely. 

Chrome-yellow  is  unaltered  by  heating  with  weak  hydrochloric  acid, 
but  destroyed  by  the  concentrated  acid.  It  is  destroyed  by  caustic 
alkalies ;  boiling  potash  converts  it  into  orange.  Chrome-orange 
becomes  greenish-yellow  when  treated  with  weak  acids. 

Black  Colors. — Logwood-black  contains  iron  as  a  mordant,  some- 
times iron  and  alumina.  In  the  latter  case  it  has  a  shade  of  blue. 
Such  a  color  is  discharged  by  chlorine,  a  yellow  resulting  from  the 
iron  ground  remaining.  Treated  with  hydrochloric  acid  and  tin  salt, 
it  becomes  red,  with  the  former  more  cherry-red,  with  the  latter 
violet-red. 

The  blacks  from  astringent  substances  are  easily  recognisable  by  the 
shade  of  olive  which  they  present.  When  treated  with  hydrochloric 
acid,  they  acquire  a  dull  orange  color ;  tin  salt  dissolve  sthe  iron,  and 
changes  the  color  to  a  dirty  olive. 

Chrome-black  may  be  known  by  its  behavior  with  chloride  of  lime, 
which  destroys  the  other  kinds  of  black,  while  it  changes  chrome-black 
to  a  chestnut-brown. 

The  examination  of  mixed  colors  is  somewhat  more  complicated ; 
but  as  they  are  for  the  most  part  constituted  of  the  substances  already 
mentioned,  it  will  not  be  difficult,  by  means  of  the  above  reactions,  to 
ascertain  in  what  manner  and  with  what  materials  such  colors  have 
been  produced. 


E. 

EXTEACTS  OF  DYEWOODS.— When  sugar  or  oils  are  subjected 
to  a  high  temperature,  they  acquire  a  rusty  brown  color ;  exposure  to 
a  low  temperature — when  these  substances  are  undergoing  purification 
-—prevents  this  evil.  In  treating  dyewoods  to  obtain  extracts  of  color- 
ing matter,  especially  for  red,  crimson,  purple,  violet,  and  such  colors, 
it  would  be  a  decided  improvement  to  use  a  vacuum-pan  and  a  low 
temperature,  because  Brazil-wood  and  logwood  yield  a  brownish  color- 
ing matter  at  a  higher  temperature  than  that  at  which  a  clear  red  and 
violet- colored  matter  is  obtained.    The  next  best  mode  of  operating, 


720 


GEE 


from  inability  to  treat  sucli  woods  in  a  vacuum-vessel,  is  to  scald  the 
Brazil-wood  and  logwood,  and  not  boil  them.  These  dyewoods  should 
be  ground  fine,  placed  in  a  fine  porous  bag  above  a  proper  tub,  and 
boiling  hot  water  poured  in  upon  them  until  the  color  is  extracted.  The 
grounds  of  these  dyewoods  may  be  boiled  afterwards,  and  a  considera- 
ble amount  of  a  brown  coloring  matter  obtained,  which  will  answer 
very  well  for  various  hues.  To  dye  a  red,  on  cotton,  wool  or  silk, 
scalded  Brazil-wood  affords  tones  nearly  as  brilliant  as  cochineal  and 
madder.  In  dyeing  purples,  violets,  lilacs,  and  blue-blacks,  scalded 
logwood  produces  rich  velvety  hues. 

In  obtaining  extracts  for  dyeing  yellow  from  quercitron  bark,  the 
same  results  are  secured,  by  the  scalding  process,  as  in  treating  logwood 
—a  clear  yellow  is  extracted  at  a  low,  a  brownish  yellow  at  a  high 
temperature.  The  solutions  of  color  derived  by  scalding  dyewoods, 
may  be  condensed  by  evaporation  in  clean  tin  or  copper  vessels,  long 
exposed  to  a  sand  bath.  In  the  absence  of  a  vacuum-pan  this  is  a  slow 
operation.  In  every  calico-print  work,  where  such  condensed  extracts 
are  required,  a  vacuum-pan  would  be  a  great  acquisition  for  improving 
several  colors,  by  the  condensation  of  extracts  at  a  low  heat.  The 
extracts  which  are  obtained  from  dyewoods  at  a  low  temperature,  when 
made  into  colors  for  printing  on  calicoes,  are  not  subject  to  become 
brownish,  when  afterwards  raised  by  exposure  to  steam  in  the  usual 
manner — -they  are  rather  much  improved  in  "clearness  of  tone." 

F. 

FIRE-PROOF  FABRICS.— Several  substances  have  been  used  with 
more  or  less  success  for  a  long  time,  in  impregnating  cotton  and  other 
inflammable  fabrics,  to  render  them  less  liable  to  burning  when  worn 
as  garments.  As  many  accidents  have  been  caused  by  the  clothes  of 
persons  taking  fire,  the  object  of  rendering  such  uninflammable,  even 
in  a  partial  degree,  is  a  laudable  one.  For  accomplishing  such  a  result, 
a  patent  was  secured  in  England  last  year  by  F.  Yersmann  and  A.  Op- 
penheim.  The  substance  which  they  use  is  the  sulphate  of  ammonia. 
A  solution  of  this  salt  is  applied  to  cotton  or  linen  by  immersing  such 
goods  until  they  are  saturated,  then  drying  them.  About  ten  per  cent, 
of  the  sulphate,  to  any  amount  of  water  used,  is  sufficient.  It  may 
also  be  mixed  with  the  starch  that  is  employed  to  stiffen  clothes.  The 
tungstate  of  soda  is  said  to  be  superior  to  the  foregoing  salt  for  the 
same  purpose,  and  it  is  now  used  in  the  laundry  of  Queen  Victoria. 

G. 

GREEN"  FROM  ARTICHOKES  AND  THISTLES.— F.  A.  Ver- 
deil  obtained  a  patent  for  obtaining  a  green  color  from  the  above-named 


MAD 


721 


substances,  June,  1856.  These  plants  are  first  cut  into  small  pieces, 
then  bruised,  soaked  in  water,  and  raised  to  the  boiling  point.  The 
liquid  is  now  pressed  out  and  filtered,  and  carbonate  of  soda  added  and 
stirred.  The  fluid  is  now  evaporated  to  dryness  at  a  low  temperature, 
and  the  coloring  matter  is  precipitated  with  alcohol.  By  adding  some 
salts  of  tin,  or  alum,  a  green  lake  is  obtained  suitable  for  printing  and 
dyeing. 

I. 

INDIGO. — A  patent  was  taken  out  in  England,  December  8,  1857, 
by  W.  J.  Ward,  for  treating  indigo  to  deoxydize  it,  and  obtain  a  blue 
color  for  printing,  as  follows :  Take  two  lbs.  of  finely  pulverized  Ben- 
gal indigo,  and  mix  with  it  four  pounds  of  glucose  made  from  rice 
starch,  of  the  consistency  of  molasses  (grape  sugar,  cane  sugar,  starch 
sugar,  and  dextrine,  will  also  answer),  also  two  pounds  ten  ounces  of 
slacked  lime,  and  two  pounds  ten  ounces  of  caustic  soda,  and  thoroughly 
mix  all  into  a  printing  paste.  After  the  goods  are  printed  with  this, 
they  are  immediately  passed  through  an  atmosphere  of  steam,  by  which 
the  glucose  acts  upon  the  indigo,  and  reduces  it,  and  the  color  is  there- 
by developed.  To  this  preparation,  salts  of  lead,  and  oxydes  of  tin 
may  also  be  added. 

M. 

TREATING  MADDER— The  madder  root  and  its  crop  have  been 
employed  in  dyeing  and  printing  from  time  immemorial.  Red,  purple, 
lilac,  drab,  and  buff  color  of  a  very  permanent  character  can  be  dyed 
with  madder  by  using  various  mordants.  In  the  form  of  garancine, 
which  is  a  preparation  of  madder  with  sulphuric  acid,  it  has  become 
more  available  for  dyeing  purposes.  Several  methods  of  manufacturing 
this  product  have  been  employed,  and  a  new  modification  was  patented 
on  the  5th  of  March,  1859,  by  F.  Verdeil  and  E.  Michel,  of  Paris.  It 
consists  in  mixing  the  ground  madder  first,  with  an  alkaline  solution, 
then  agitating  this  to  bring  it  in  contact  with  currents  of  air  for  twenty- 
four  hours.  The  object  of  the  agitation  is  to  make  the  liquor  absorb 
oxygen ;  after  this  the  madder  is  treated  with  sulphuric  acid,  washed 
and  dried  in  the  usual  manner. 

MADDER  STEAM  REDS  AND  PINKS. — A  patent  was  recently 
granted  to  Frederick  A.  Gathy,  of  Accrington,  England,  for  fixing  the 
coloring  matter  of  madder  for  producing  red  and  pink  for  steam  colors 
in  calico-printing  as  follows: — A  concentrated  solution  of  madder  is 
obtained  by  infusing  garancine  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  in  boil- 
ing acetic  or  pyroligneous  acid,  after  which  it  is  filtered.  When  an 
extract  is  to  be  used  of  about  fifteen  times  the  strength  of  common 
madder,  it  requires  about  fifteen  times  its  weight  of  acetic  acid  of  a 

2 


722 


MUR 


strength  at  12°  Twaddles'  hydrometer.  For  red  the  strong  concen- 
trated solution  is  thickened  with  gum,  and  for  every  gallon  of  the  solu- 
tion one  pint  of  acetate  of  alumina — red  liquor — at  10°  of  Twaddles' 
hydrometer  is  added.  For  pinks,  or  pale  reds,  the  concentrated  solu- 
tion is  reduced  in  strength  according  to  the  depth  of  shade  required. 
When  any  pure  coloring  of  madder  is  used,  such  as  alizarin,  of  a  strength 
thirty  times  greater  than  common  madder,  it  is  not  necessary  to  make 
a  hot  solution  of  it  in  acetic  acid ;  it  only  requires  to  be  ground  in  a 
small  quantity  of  water,  and  with  acetic  acid,  and  the  acetate  of  alumina, 
previously  thickened  with  gum.  In  this  case  half  a  pound  of  the  ex- 
tract is  used  for  one  gallon  of  acetic  acid,  and  one  pint  of  the  acetate 
of  alumina  of  the  above  strength — 10°.  After  the  cotton  has  been 
printed  with  any  of  these  colors,  it  is  afterwards  steamed  and  washed 
in  the  usual  way  known  to  printers  and  dyers,  and  if  it  is  somewhat 
dull  in  shade,  it  may  be  rendered  much  brighter  by  passing  the  cloth 
through  boiling  soap  suds.  These  madder  colors  may  be  printed  on 
cotton,  linen,  and  silk. 

MUREXIDE  COLORS. — Quite  a  number  of  brilliant  tones  of  color 
have  been  obtained  within  a  few  years  past  from  preparations  of  uric 
acid,  denominated  murexides.  This  acid  may  be  obtained  by  boiling 
guano  for  several  hours  with  caustic  potash,  and  water,  then  filtering 
the  product,  which  is  afterwards  evaporated,  until  it  becomes  of  a 
pasty  thickness.  It  is  now  diffused  in  warm  water,  and  hydrochloric 
acid  added  in  excess,  when  the  uric  acid  is  thrown  down,  as  a  gelati- 
nous mass.  It  is  now  washed,  dried,  and  becomes  a  crystalline  powder. 
It  is  then  mixed  with  dilute  nitric  acid,  and  heated  until  it  assumes  a 
flesh  color,  when  ammonia  is  added  diluted  with  half  its  bulk  of  water, 
and  the  whole  stirred.  On  becoming  cool,  murexide,  or  purpurate  of 
ammonia  (CisHeNsOg),  is  formed  in  crystals  which  are  of  a  deep  red 
color  with  transmitted,  and  a  greenish  color  with  reflected  light.  This 
substance  produces  with  mordants  several  beautiful  colors  on  textile 
fabrics,  but  it  is  not  yet  reduced  to  a  general,  economical,  and  practical 
dyeing  agent.  Various  products  are  obtained  from  uric  acid,  but  that 
of  murexide  and  alloxan  are  now  best  known  among  dyers.  This  lat- 
ter is  prepared  by  gradually  adding  four  pints  of  nitric  acid  of  the 
specific  gravity  1*45  to  one  pint  of  dry  uric  acid.  The  resulting  liquid 
soon  crystallizes  into  a  mass  of  alloxan;  the  formulas  of  which  is 
OsHs^Oio.  Its  solution  stains  the  skin  a  deep  purple.  In  preparing 
alloxan  the  action  must  be  gentle,  and  the  uric  should  be  added  to  the 
nitric  acid  cautiously,  and  as  soon  as  crystals  begin  to  appear  in  the 
liquid,  the  whole  is  allowed  to  cool,  when  it  becomes  a  semi-solid. 
The  mass  is  now  thrown  upon  a  filtering  funnel,  stopped  partially  by 
asbestos.  The  crystals  obtained  are  purified  by  dissolution  in  cold 
water  and  recrystallization. 

PURPLES  AND  LILACS. — For  a  long  period  the  murexide  resisted 
all  efforts  to  make  it  moderately  permanent,  but  success  was  at  last 


MUR 


secured.  To  fix  it  on  silk,  mix  it  with  corrosive  sublimate  in  solution 
in  a  bath,  and  on  silk  being  immersed  and  handled  in  it  for  a  short 
period,  it  assumes  the  rich  purple  color  which  has  conferred  upon  it 
the  name  that  has  come  down  from  the  days  of  old  as  the  murex  of 
Tyre.  The  intensity  of  the  color  is  dependent  on  the  amount  of 
murexide  and  corrosive  sublimate  (bi-chloride  of  mercury)  used — a 
strong  solution  produces  a  purple,  a  weak  solution  a  lilac.  These  colors 
are  also  applicable  to  wool,  which,  after  being  cleaned,  is  first  handled 
in  a  warm  bath  of  the  murexide  for  one  hour,  then  dried  in  the  shade 
in  the  open  air.  After  this  it  is  passed  into  a  second  bath  at  160°  Fah., 
containing  corrosive  sublimate  and  acetic  acid,  when  after  about  twenty 
minutes  handling  the  beautiful  purple  color  appears.  A  little  oxalic 
acid  is  generally  added  to  the  first  bath  of  murexide.  Cotton  is  dyed 
purple  with  a  mixture  of  murexide  and  nitrate  of  lead  in  the  first  warm 
bath ;  corrosive  sublimate  and  acetic  acid  are  employed  in  a  second 
bath  as  the  fixing  and  developing  agents. 

Another  method  of  dyeing  murexide  on  fine  wool  is  to  boil  it  first 
for  one  hour  in  a  bath  of  dilute  muriate  of  tin,  with  the  acid  slightly  in 
excess,  or  with  a  little  oxalic  acid  added.  After  this  the  wool  is  taken 
out  and  steeped  for  two  hours  in  a  cold  solution  of  murexide,  when  it 
gradually  assumes  the  usual  purple  color.  It  is  now  lifted,  and  to  the 
solution  some  dissolved  corrosive  sublimate  is  added,  when  the  wool  on 
being  passed  through  it  for  about  fifteen  minutes  the  color  is  fixed,  and 
assumes  a  brilliant  crimson  hue. 

Another  method  of  obtaining  murexide  was  patented  by  William 
Clark,  London,  May  20th,  1857.  His  system  is  as  follows:  Any 
desirable  quantity  of  alloxantine  in  crystals  or  in  a  powdered  state  is 
submitted  to  the  action  of  ammonia  in  gaseous  state.  A  close  box  is 
required  for  this  purpose,  and  according  to  the  concentration  of  the 
ammoniacal  gas  employed,  the  transformation  of  the  alloxantine  into 
murexide  is  effected  more  or  less  rapidly.  Moisture  must  be  excluded 
as  much  as  possible,  in  order  to  obtain  a  perfect  result.  After  contact 
with  the  ammoniacal  gas  and  the  alloxantine  for  about  two  hours,  the 
combination  is  effected,  and  the  murexide  produced.  The  product  is 
now  filtered  and  dried,  to  drive  off  any  excess  of  ammonia.  If  allox- 
antine is  treated  with  ammonia  dissolved  in  alcohol,  results  nearly 
similar  to  those  obtained  from  the  gas  will  be  the  result.  It  requires 
a  considerable  time  to  saturate  the  alloxantine  thus,  but  this  is  perhaps 
the  most  simple  and  safe  mode,  as  there  is  no  danger  of  injury  from 
prolonged  action.  The  carbonate  may  be  employed  with  alcohol  as  a 
substitute  for  pure  ammonia. 

MUREXIDE  PIKKS. — Take  cotton  pieces  or  yarn  (previously 
bleached)  and  pad  them  in  a  solution  made  by  dissolving  murexide 
with  nitrate  of  lead,  to  which  a  solution  of  bi-chloride  of  mercury  is 
added,  as  follows :  To  8  gallons  of  boiling  water,  add  6  lbs.  of  nitrate 
of  lead,  and  dissolve  it,  and  to  this  add  1  lb.  of  murexide  and  2  gallons 


724 


NAT 


of  water  in  which  6  ozs.  of  bi-chloride  or  any  soluble  salts  of  mercury 
have  been  dissolved.  This  quantity  is  for  a  medium  shade  of  pink ; 
for  a  light  shade,  less  may  be  used,  and  for  a  dark  shade  more  murex- 
ide,  nitrate  of  lead,  and  the  salt  of  mercury.  The  pieces,  or  the  yarn, 
are  first  padded  in  this  preparation  until  it  is  brought  to  a  brownish-red 
tint.  After  this  they  are  passed  through  a  solution  containing  starch 
or  dextrine,  or  other  soluble  dressing  substance,  in  which  has  been 
dissolved  some  soda  or  pearlash.  This,  it  is  said,  makes  a  permanent 
pink ;  and  a  patent  was  granted  for  it  on  January  20th,  1859,  to  Henry 
Sagar,  of  Broughton,  Lancashire,  England,  and  Alex.  Schultz,  of  Paris- 
The  acetate  of  soda  used  as  a  substitute  for  the  alkaline  salts,  makes 
a  pink  of  a  different  shade,  inclining  to  a  brown. 

NEW  MORDANT  FOR  MUREXIDE,  CATECHU,  BRAZIL- 
WOOD, AND  LOGWOOD  COLORS.— The  goods  are  first  immersed 
in  a  solution  of  nitrate  or  acetate  of  lead,  or  in  alum,  or  nitrate  of  tin, 
or  copper.  They  are  now  pressed  or  wrung  out  of  this,  then  passed 
through  a  solution  of  stannate,  or  plombate  of  soda,  or  ammoniate  of 
copper,  by  which  operations  a  multiple  mordant  or  base  is  obtained 
on  the  goods,  preparatory  to  treating  them  in  the  solution  of  the 
principal  coloring  agent.  Thus  prepared,  murexide  colors  of  superior 
brilliancy  are  obtained  on  goods,  by  the  murexide  being  afterwards 
applied.  Superior  colors  of  the  bi-chromate  of  potash  (chrome),  Brazil- 
wood, catechu,  and  logwood,  are  also  obtained  on  goods  by  such  a 
preparation.  The  strength  of  these  mordants,  as  all  dyers  know, 
must  be  proportioned  to  the  tone  of  color  required.  The  nitrates  of 
the  metals,  and  the  acetates  first  used,  may  be  as  strong  as  3°  Twad- 
dles hydrometer;  the  alkaline  solutions  may  be  1°. 

Murexide  purple  may  be  dyed  by  dissolving  the  murexide  in  nitrate 
of  lead,  immersing  the  goods  in  this,  and  afterwards  passing  them 
through  a  bath  of  the  acetate  of  lead,  which  fixes  the  color.  Thick- 
ened with  gum,  the  murexide  may,  with  the  nitrate  of  lead,  be  printed 
on  pieces  of  cloth,  then  fixed  with  an  acetate  solution.  This  method 
of  mordanting  was  patented  by  R.  Rumney  and  W.  S.  MacDonald, 
Manchester,  England,  January  5,  1859. 


N. 

NATURE  PRINTING. — C.  Dresser  obtained  a  patent  in  England, 
1855,  for  effecting  what  is  called  nature  printing.  If  a  leaf  is  to  be 
printed  from,  it  is  first  prepared  with  a  thin  coat  of  lithographic  ink 
on  one  side ;  this  is  placed  upon  the  lithographic  stone,  which  has  been 
previously  warmed,  and  over  this  a  leaf  of  white  paper  is  now  laid, 
and  pressed  gently  with  a  pad.  Upon  removing  the  paper  and  leaf, 
a  delicate  and  perfect  impression  of  the  latter  is  found  upon  the  stone, 


PAT 


725 


which  is  now  treated  in  the  common  manner  like  a  drawing  on  such 
stone,  and  printed  from  by  the  ordinary  process. 

O. 

ODORIFEROUS  COLORS. — A  patent  was  issued  to  D.  F.  Grant 
(England),  in  July,  1856,  for  incorporating  with  inks,  and  colors  em- 
ployed in  printing,  such  odoriferous  gums  and  essential  oils  as  will 
impart  to  printed  flowers  the  same  scents  as  the  natural  flowers  which 
they  represent.  In  the  manufacture  of  artificial  flowers,  such  scented 
oils  may  be  applied  to  them  with  a  pleasing  effect. 

P. 

AMERICAN  PATENTS.— On  the  21st  of  March,  1854,  C.  T. 
Appleton  of  Roxbury,  Mass.,  obtained  two  patents  for  apparatus  and 
machinery  applied  to  dyeing.  The  one  embraced  the  placing  of  goods 
in  a  close  chamber  and  exhausting  the  air  therefrom  to  produce  a 
vacuum,  when  the  coloring  liquor  was  afterwards  forced  in.  The 
other  was  for  an  arrangement  of  machinery  to  give  a  piece  of  cloth  a 
succession  of  dips  and  airings  at  one  continuous  operation,  to  obtain 
the  desired  depth  of  tone  or  shade.  On  May  30th,  of  the  same  year, 
Mr.  Appleton  obtained  another  patent  for  an  improvement  in  controlling 
the  pressure  in  the  vacuum  vessel  in  which  he  colored  the  cloth,  also, 
for  keeping  the  cloth  in  motion,  to  prevent  the  color  going  on  in 
streaks,  so  as  to  have  a  uniformly  dyed  surface. 

On  the  21st  of  October,  1856,  a  patent  was  issued  to  J.  P.  Derby,  of 
Amesbury,  Mass.,  for  a  resinous  resist-paste — to  be  applied  cold — in 
calico  printing,  to  resist  the  dyeing  liquor,  and  which  could  be  after- 
wards removed  by  warm  water,  or  alcohol. 

On  the  19th  of  May,  1857,  John  Fallon  of  Laurence,  Mass.,  was 
granted  a  patent  for  combining  "  a  short  india  rubber  blanket  with 
a  multiple  fold  of  greys,"  passing  once  through  the  calico  printing 
machine. 

On  the  11th  August,  1857,  N.  M.  Aine,  of  Philadelphia,  secured  a 
patent  for  the  combination  of  a  steam  chamber  with  friction  rollers,  for 
operating  silk ;  and  on  the  5th  of  January,  1858,  he  obtained  another 
for  an  improvement,  whereby  he  submitted  the  silk  to  the  combined 
action  of  steaming  and  friction  rollers,  either  during  or  after  the  dyeing 
process,  for  the  purpose  of  improving  its  lustre. 

M.  Delaney  of  Clinton,  Mass.,  secured  a  patent  on  January  26th, 
1858,  for  an  improvement  in  apparatus  for  dyeing  parti-colored  yarns 
for  carpets.  On  March  23rd,  of  the  same  year,  D.  B.  Kerr,  of  New 
York,  obtained  a  patent  for  adjusting  yarn  by  loops  and  clamps  for 


726 


PUR 


parti-colors — clouded  yarns.  No  patent  for  dyeing  purposes  was  issued 
in  1859.  In  England  a  great  number  were  issued ;  and  in  France, 
where  dyeing  is  so  much  encouraged,  a  very  great  number  were 
obtained. 

FRENCH  PUKPLE. — This  is  the  name  given  to  a  new  substance  of 
the  murexide  class,  manufactured  by  M.  Guinon  &  Co.,  of  Paris, 
France.  In  appearance,  it  resembles  cakes  of  violet  indigo,  and  is 
very  beautiful.  Some  of  it  has  been  introduced  into  the  United  States 
by  its  manufacturers,  and  we  have  been  furnished  with  a  sample  of  it. 
For  dyeing  light  purple  and  lilac  hues  on  silk  it  has  no  superior,  so  far 
as  it  relates  to  beauty,  but  it  is  very  high  in  price,  and  as  the  perma- 
nency of  color  on  silk  (which  is  never  washed  when  in  dresses)  is  not 
a  matter  of  so  much  consequence  as  colors  on  cotton,  it  may  never 
supersede  archil  in  silk  dyeing. 

PICRAMIC  ACID. — When  a  cold  saturated  alcoholic  solution  of 
picric  acid  is  saturated  with  ammonia,  and  sulphuretted  hydrogen  is 
then  passed  into  it  until  saturation  is  effected,  the  liquid  acquires  a 
very  red  color,  and  deposits  a  mass  of  small  red  crystals.  A  hot 
aqueous  solution  of  this  ammoniacal  salt,  treated  with  acetic  acid,  pre- 
cipitates picramic  acid,  according  to  M.  Aime  Girard.  It  forms  into 
fine  needle  crystals  of  a  ruby-red  color.  It  is  soluble  in  alcohol  and 
ether,  but  nearly  insoluble  in  boiling  water.  It  has  great  coloring 
power,  and  has  also  been  called  nitrobenzamic  acid.  Its  formula  is 
C12,  H6,  O10,  N3,  and  it  is  of  the  aniline  series. 

PUEPLE  HEART.— At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Manchester  (Eng- 
land) Philosophical  Society,  Dr.  F.  Grace  Calvert,  the  eminent  chemist, 
read  a  paper  on  researches  on  several  organic  coloring  matters,  in 
which  light  was  demonstrated  to  play  an  important  part  in  changing 
and  producing  colors  with  various  substances.  Thus,  the  solution  of  a 
wood  in  England  called  "  purple-heart"  is  perfectly  colorless,  and  if 
exposed  in  a  dark  place  to  the  air  for  several  days,  it  will  remain 
unchanged,  but  if  placed  in  a  glass  vessel,  hermetically  sealed,  and  then 
exposed  to  the  light,  it  assumes  a  purple  color.  Heat  also  appears  to 
have  a  peculiar  effect  in  producing  the  color,  for  when  a  small  quantity 
of  hydrochloric  acid  was  mixed  with  the  clear  solution  of  the  purple- 
heart,  it  remained  colorless,  but  when  heated  to  about  154°  Fall.,  it 
acquired  a  purple  hue,  and  when  heated  to  276°  Fah.,  in  the  dark, 
without  being  mixed  with  an  acid,  it  also  became  a  deep  purple. 
Woollen,  silk,  and  cotton  goods,  when  steeped  in  a  decoction  of  this 
wood,s  were  simply  colored  a  light  grey,  but  when  exposed  to  the  light 
and  a  bath  of  acidulated  water,  they  were  at  once  dyed  a  purple.  The 
color  withstands  the  action  of  acids,  and  is  more  durable  on  silks  than 
purples  dyed  with  archil.  There  are  many  of  the  common  woods  in 
American  forests  the  solutions  of  which  may  be  capable  of  coloring 
purple  and  other  hues 


EED 


727 


R. 

RED  COLOR ;  OIL  PREPARATIONS.— From  time  immemorial,  a 
most  brilliant  and  permanent  color  has  been  dyed  on  cotton  and  linen 
with  madder,  after  the  cotton  had  undergone  a  peculiar  and  tedious  pre- 
paration, extending  over  several  weeks  in  time,  and  embracing  several 
processes  of  treatment.  The  art  of  dyeing  this  color,  called  Turkey 
red,  was  imported  into  France  from  Adrianople,  thence  into  other 
parts  of  Europe.  The  cotton  undergoes  several  paddings  among 
liquors  composed  of  extracts  from  sheep  excrements  and  soap  suds, 
made  of  olive  oil  mixed  with  alkaline  leys.  Repeated  exposure  to  the 
air  and  dryings,  likewise  steeping  in  sumac,  or  gall,  and  alum  liquors, 
are  necessary  to  prepare  the  goods  for  dyeing,  with  madder  in  a  bath, 
which  is  usually  boiled  for  one  and  a  half  hours.  After  this  the  cotton 
has  to  be  boiled  at  a  high  heat  in  close  boilers  among  several  soapy 
liquors,  to  clear  up  the  color.  It  once  required  a  period  of  nearly 
three  weeks  after  the  processes  were  commenced — treating  the  cotton 
every  day — before  the  color  was  completed.  Such  processes  have  been 
rather  a  disgrace  to  chemistry,  involving  as  they  evidently  did,  a  sort 
of  hap-hazard  discovery  of  a  color  in  a  barbarous  age,  which  baffled 
the  explanation  of  savans  and  challenged  the  most  modern  discoveries 
to  rival.  It  was  supposed  that  the  oiling  baths  animalized  the  cotton, 
and  changed  its  nature,  to  enable  it  to  take  on  a  mordant  of  alum  and 
then  give  out  a  color  equal  to  that  on  wool.  Recent  chemical  investi- 
gations have  eliminated  the  fact  that  no  animalization  of  the  cotton 
takes  place,  but  that  a  sort  of  peculiar  resinous  compound  is  formed, 
by  the  treatment  described,  in  the  pores  of  the  cotton,  and  that  this  is 
the  true  mordant  of  the  permanent  color.  In  England  and  Scotland 
the  olive  oil  now  employed  for  dyeing  this  color  is  treated  with  sul- 
phuric acid  preparatory  to  using  it  for  liquors,  and  the  processes  have 
been  somewhat  shortened  of  late  years,  but  the  goods  dyed  forty  years 
ago  by  the  first  modes  introduced  into  western  Europe  were  fully  supe- 
rior in  brilliant  and  deep  tones  to  any  that  are  dyed  at  present. 

A  substance  called  Sooranjee,  much  used  in  the  East  Indies  for 
dyeing  a  brownish  red,  was  introduced  a  few  years  since  into  Scotland, 
and  various  calico-printers  and  dyers  experimented  with  it,  in  order 
to  obtain  a  permanent  color  like  that  which  the  Hindoos  manage  to 
put  on  their  cotton.  All  their  efforts  were  in  vain  ;  they  neither  could 
obtain  a  deep  nor  a  fixed  color  with  it  by  any  common  mordant.  Mr. 
J.  Napier,  in  his  work  on  dyeing,  states  that  Professor  Anderson,  at 
last,  hit  upon  the  secret,  by  using  the  Sooranjee  in  place  of  madder 
with  goods  prepared  with  the  Turkey  red  processes.  The  oil-prepared 
fabrics  made  the  Sooranjee  extract  a  permanent  color.  There  can  be 
no  doubt  but  that  oil-prepared  cotton  goods,  when  dyed  with  any 
common  dye-wood,  yield  more  fixed  and  brilliant  colors.   What  lesson 


728 


STF 


should  American  color- chemists  derive  from  this  fact?  If  it  is  a  resin 
that  is  formed  in  the  pores  of  the  cotton  by  the  oil  processes,  resin 
oils,  which  are  so  cheap  and  abundant  in  the  United  States,  afford  an 
interesting  source  for  experiment.  There  are  tens  of  thousands  of  tons 
of  black  resin  in  North  Carolina,  which  can  be  obtained  for  almost 
nothing ;  they  are  a  nuisance  in  the  pine  woods  near  turpentine  distil- 
leries ;  they  lie  there  inviting  the  investigations  of  chemists. 

EUBY  COLOR. — A  most  beautiful  and  simple  ruby  color  can  be 
imparted  to  merino  fabrics  and  fine  wool,  by  coloring  it  first  a  purple, 
then  a  red  on  the  top  of  the  ground  color.  For  five  pounds  of  wool 
take  one  pound  of  logwood,  one  ounce  of  crude  tartar,  four  of  alum, 
and  a  pint  of  muriate  of  tin,  and  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water.  Boil 
the  wool  in  this  for  half  an  hour;  then  take  it  out,  cool  it,  and  wash. 
Now,  to  a  clear  liquor  in  a  boiler,  add  two  pounds  of  Brazil-wood,  and 
boil  the  wool  in  this  for  one  hour ;  then  take  out  and  wash  well.  The 
ruby  color  thus  obtained  inclines  to  the  deep  red  hue,  and  has  a 
very  rich  appearance  when  looking  across  the  surface  of  the  fabric. 
In  this  feature  it  surpasses  colors  of  the  same  class  dyed  with  cochi- 
neal and  cudbear,  and  it  is  not  much  inferior  in  brilliancy. 

S. 

STEAMING  COLORS. — In  steaming  printed  woollen  yarns  they 
are  laid  on  woollen  trays,  and  a  layer  of  rice-hulls,  or  cut  straw,  is  laid 
both  below  and  above,  and  the  whole  covered  with  a  fabric  of  woven 
cocoa-nut  fibre.  Several  of  these  trays  are  thus  loaded,  placed  one 
above  another  on  a  suitable  carriage,  and  each  supported  on  moveable 
horizontal  bars.  The  carriage  thus  loaded,  is  placed  in  a  close  steam- 
chamber,  and  the  steam  usually  condenses  on  all  the  surfaces.  Impure 
water  would  get  among  the  printed  yarn  were  it  not  for  the  rice-hulls, 
and  the  fibrous  cloth  laid  upon  them.  As  a  substitute  for  the  rice-hulls 
and  coarse  fibre  cloth,  Henry  Curson,  Jun.,  of  Kidderminster,  England, 
employs  a  very  thick  cloth  of  cotton  or  wool,  with  a  long  nap  on  its 
outside,  which  has  been  found  more  convenient,  and  answers  a  much 
better  purpose.  The  printed  woollen  yarns  are  principally  employed 
for  the  warps  of  tapestry  carpets. 

When  printed  garancine  and  logwood  colors  are  submitted  to  high 
pressure  steam  of  250°  or  800°  Fah.,  or  to  chemical  solutions,  such  as 
the  sulphate  of  soda,  capable  of  being  heated  to  a  high  temperature, 
the  colors  are  rendered  more  permanent  and  brilliant. 

STAINING  WOOD — ROSEWOOD  IMITATION.— A  patent  was 
issued  to  John  W.  Parry,  of  Boston,  on  June  16th,  1857,  for  making  a 
liquid  rosewood  transparent  stain.  To  one  gallon  of  water  add  four 
ounces  of  potash,  and  when  dissolved  add  four  ounces  of  ground  red 
sanders.    When  the  color  is  extracted  from  this,  two  and  a  half 


TAR 


729 


pounds  of  gum  shellac  are  added,  and  the  whole  mixture  placed  over  a 
fire,  in  a  clean  vessel,  and  stirred  until  all  is  dissolved.  This  prepara- 
tion is  the  groundwork,  and  is  put  on  the  wood  first,  with  a  brush,  and 
is  of  a  red  hue.  A  strong  decoction  of  logwood  is  now  laid  on  the 
wood  also,  to  make  the  dark  streaks,  in  imitation  of  the  rosewood. 

SORGHUM  RED  COLOR.— The  Druggists'  Circular  states  that 
a  patent  has  been  lately  obtained  in  Austria  for  extracting  a  red  color- 
ing matter  from  the  well-known  Chinese  sugar  cane.  The  cane,  after 
the  juice  is  expressed  from  it,  is  piled  up  under  cover,  in  heaps,  several 
feet  high,  and  the  fermentation  is  interrupted  by  drying.  When  dry, 
the  mass  is  ground  in  a  mill,  than  covered  in  proper  vessels,  with  cold 
soft  water,  and  allowed  to  stand  for  twelve  hours ;  but  little  of  the 
pigment  dissolves  during  that  time.  It  is  then  drained,  and  after- 
wards treated  with  a  weak  caustic,  soda,  or  potash  lye,  until  this  no 
longer  extracts  anything.  This  solution  is  carefully  neutralized  with 
sulphuric  acid,  thus  precipitating  the  coloring  matter  in  red  flakes, 
which,  after  settling,  is  washed  with  water,  collected  in  filters,  and 
dried.  This  color  dissolves  in  alcohol,  alkaline  lyes,  dilute  acids,  &c, 
and  is  employed  for  the  dyeing  of  silks  and  woollens  with  the  common 
tin  mordants. 

T. 

SUBSTITUTE  FOR  TARTARIC  ACID.— In  dyeing  saflaower  pinks 
tartaric  acid  is  used  to  produce  the  blueing  effect  of  the  process.  A 
substitute  for  this  is  a  mixture  of  dilute  sulphuric  acid  and  muriate  of 
ammonia  boiled  together  for  one  hour,  the  clear  liquor  being  the  pro- 
duct employed;  twelve  quarts  sulphuric  acid,  thirty  of  water,  and 
forty-eight  lbs.  of  the  muriate  of  ammonia  are  the  proportions  of  this 
mixture. 


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Date  Due 



6  7-  3  ^ssz, 

5-^-3  2. 


